Is the American Dream of Home Ownership Dead?
January 19th, 2008 by dirkknudsenHere is a Great Question and I think a great response to the Question:Â Read On:
Philosophical question: Is the American Dream advantageous or detrimental?
We’ve been getting more and more “How do I buy foreclosures?” and “Can I really buy with no money down?” questions caused partly by late night infomercials. The entire financial and housing crisis we are facing is based on the American Dream of buying your own home. Have scams over taken opportunities? Discuss…
And here is my response and I hope you like it!
“I hope the Dream is alive. Everybody should own a home. I think the dream got blown out of proportion and we are a “Bigger and Better” generation. The dream of course was partly based upon ownership of land and property.
The Puritans never had that right and so coming to this country was all about LAND and Free land at that. That drove the American people for about 300 years right? Now the problem is that the Dream has turned into a nightmare for many. It really has.
But I believe that even the people that have just lost homes are already Dreaming and thinking of their next home. From the standpoint that we all want a place to call home and to someday own that home and not have to pay money to the bank….I say yes. It is alive and advantageous.
From a tax perspective the American Dream is alive. From the standpoint of loving your property and going to Home Depot and feeling good about painting a new little girls room Pink….the dream is alive and I consider that a big advantage. From an investment standpoint it is still alive. Real Estate historically has been the most stable and sound investment anyone could have made in this country.
Looking at this market you might say it was all for not. We were bound to have a down market and correction at some point. But if you do not have to sell you do not have to worry. For the vast majority of Americans the Dream is alive and still offer all of the advantages that it has always offered.
The disadvantage if any is the fact that a few are getting hurt now. That is a sad thing. I think that we all want and tend to buy more than we need right?
I am reading Thoreau’s “Walden” and he speaks out against this very idea ….that we have to Own things. He lives in a small shack, lives off the land, works only for his food and barters and trades for everything else. Whatever he can not carry on his back he does not have or want. And he rails against the New England framers who trade their lives for their homes…. and he points out that it is all pointless and rooted in mis-guided goals and principles.
You know in many ways he was right. and maybe in his view the dream is dead and misguided. But for most of us we want to own. We refuse to be serfs and indentured servants living on the Lords fiefdom. No. We want our own castle and our own Kingdom and it exists within a 50 x 100 lot, 4 walls, 200 yards of carpet and a Cherry Stair Railing.
This market will never kill the dream. Americans are fighters and I am betting they all will keep the dream alive. There are too many good things to be gained.
Good question…Thanks!
Dirk T Knudsen
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#1 Rated ReMax team in Oregon
“The Real Estate Doctor”
