Houses not selling? Why is this a surprise?

I am not a mathematician but seems like no one is adding up folks who declared bankruptcy, and the other set of folks who had their last house foreclosed on, or the rest of the people whose credit is hosed, now who is left to buy up all these houses? I would wager those folks already own houses. Unless someone starts forgiving some of this credit stuff, nothing is going to move. It really seems pretty simple.

Comments

[Fred Kilgallin]

You'd think, except that the major banks already have had their losses pretty much covered, are making money selling derivatives (again), and don't really have any need to approve anything. Part of me thinks there may be a conspiracy (I know, who doesn't see one these days?)to punish the current admin for trying to regulate them by keeping the economy just off balance enough so people blame this administration without letting it tip so far over that people would just start reflexively hanging every banker they met. Crazy? Answer this: if you and lots of other people are smart enough to figure this out, why is nothing being done? Who benefits from the status quo? Government? Or capital?

[Lisa Scheuplein]

Great comment Fred. Yeah, I wonder the same...if I can see it, economists MUST. So I ponder. . .