In the wake of such a fiasco, people do what they do best when they're pissed off and want answers- they find someone to blame. The truth is there are so many entities and individuals to hold at fault that focusing efforts on one of them is pointless and counterproductive. The problem is that all of them fed off each other, refusing to take personal responsibility and use the appropriate judgment.
The government was stupid to pile every single deed in two gigantic companies. The bank was stupid to lend money out to a (potential) homeowner that they knew couldn't afford to pay it back. That same (potential) homeowner was stupid to attempt to take out a loan they knew was outside of their means. Wall Street was stupid to give companies positive credit ratings when they were really in the toilet. The list goes on. They all thought the housing bubble would continue to expand and there was nothing to stop it. Everyone involved deserves an equal slice of the blame.
But instead of being such a pescimist (which essentially equals a realist right now), let's stop taking names and take a look at how/when this catastrophe will end.
Remember, don't tell me the problem, give me the solution.
An LA Times blog quoted Jim Cramer, host of CNBC's "Mad Money" and a former Wall Street insider, as saying that the trough ("bottom" for those who aren't familiar with economic jargon) may arrive as soon as the third quarter of this year... Yay!!! He mentioned how "an increase in sales spurred by falling prices; a slowdown in home building; federal efforts to help troubled borrowers; and population growth that will spur household creation and demand for housing."
And for those who have been hit the hardest, I'm talking to you Arizona, California and Florida, he also went on to say, "The first to fall is usually the first to return."
Booyah Jim...
By Justin Ellis
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