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Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsRobert Reich: The Ongoing Housing Crisis and the End of an Era
No Longer Home Sweet Home: The Ongoing Housing Crisis and the End of an Era
Tuesday, February 28, 2012
Economic cheerleaders on Wall Street and in the White House are taking heart. The US has had three straight months of faster job growth. The number of Americans each week filing new claims for unemployment benefits is down by more than 50,000 since early January. Corporate profits are healthy. The S&P 500 on Friday closed at a post-financial crisis high.
Has the American recovery finally entered the sweet virtuous cycle in which more spending generates more jobs, more jobs make consumers more confident, and the confidence creates more spending?
On the surface it would appear so.
American consumers in recent months have let loose their pent-up demand for cars and appliances. Businesses have been replacing low inventories and worn equipment. The richest 10 per cent, owners of approximately 90 per cent of the nations financial capital, have felt freer to splurge. Consumer confidence is at a one-year high, according to data released on Friday. ................(more)
The complete piece is at: http://robertreich.org/post/18439504925
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Robert Reich: The Ongoing Housing Crisis and the End of an Era (Original Post)
marmar
Feb 2012
OP
CBHagman
(16,994 posts)1. He mentions stagnant wages and diminishing benefits...
...but one thing he doesn't mention is the number of people shut out of homeownership entirely -- those who can't save for a down payment, for instance -- or skyrocketing rents.
woo me with science
(32,139 posts)3. Good point. nt
woo me with science
(32,139 posts)2. K&R