A May 4 International Monetary Fund working paper found that collapse of the housing bubble raised the structural unemployment rate by reducing worker mobility.
An April 27 working paper from the International Monetary Fund examined international evidence of boom-and-bust cycles in real estate. It recommends that policymakers be more proactive in preventing booms in order to avoid inevitable busts.
An April 26 report from the Joint Center of Housing at Harvard found that rising rent is reducing housing affordability.
An April 22 Gallup poll found that 69 percent of people think now is a good time to buy a house versus 29 percent who think it’s a bad time.
On April 12, Pew published a survey on housing trends. It finds that people still have a very strong desire to be homeowners despite the recent housing crash.
An April 4 Harris poll found that 22 percent of homeowners report having difficulty making mortgage payments and 21 percent believe their homes are worth less than their mortgages.
A March 18 OECD working paper examined the drivers of home ownership rates in its member countries. The relaxation of down payment constraints and the aging of societies are key drivers in recent years.
A March working paper by American University economist Martha Starr examined the role of economists in creating the housing bubble.
I last posted items on this topic on March 31.
Bruce Bartlett is an American historian and columnist who focuses on the intersection between politics and economics. He blogs daily and writes a weekly column at The Fiscal Times. Bartlett has written for Forbes Magazine and Creators Syndicate, and his work is informed by many years in government, including as a senior policy analyst in the Reagan White House. He is the author of seven books including the New York Times best-seller, Imposter: How George W. Bush Bankrupted America and Betrayed the Reagan Legacy (Doubleday, 2006).
