THE COLLAPSE OF THE AMERICAN DREAM

"The percentage of U.S. homeowners who owe more than their house is worth will nearly double to 48 percent in 2011 from 26 percent at the end of March, portending another blow to the housing market, Deutsche Bank said on Wednesday.

Home price declines will have their biggest impact on prime "conforming" loans that meet underwriting and size guidelines of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the bank said in a report. Prime conforming loans make up two-thirds of mortgages, and are typically less risky because of stringent requirements.

The drop in home prices is fueling a vicious cycle of foreclosures as it eliminates homeowner equity and gives borrowers an incentive to walk away from their mortgages. The more severe the negative equity, the more likely are defaults, since many borrowers believe prices will not recover enough."
Yahoo

While the government is busy paying back its friends in the auto industry, those of us in the construction business are watching it all go away, forever. I'm 50 years old and have been in this business all of my life. It's over. I will never again be able to make a living as a carpenter. Sure, I'll find some jobs here and there, but nothing that will be profitable enough to pay the bills.

It's not only the trades. Think of all of the businesses that support construction; suppliers, manufacturers, trucking companies, sales people, inspectors, bankers, insurance, even the fast food joints and taverns where we spend our money. The downturn in this industry will have an impact that we cannot start to guess at.

So while we all rejoice that the market has gone up 50% in the last few months, lets take a look at reality. The economy cannot be growing when this industry and so many others have experienced paradigm shifts; shifts that have such far reaching impact on everyone in the country.

Everything is about to change.