[book_mike]

Ignoring what the value of a currency may be I wish buyers would reject bad prices. I really care about what the actual cost of a thing is from dirt to package. The companies that market, make and deliver products should make a profit but I'm not buying their Ferrari. Capitalism start with "No deal, not at that price."

[ClumsyPilot]

Problem is the amount of money people will pay for a place to live is unlimited.

If people would take 300 year mortgages that would put your kids into debt bondade if thry could

[mywittyname]

A 30 year mortgage is just below the threshold of being an interest only mortgage. Especially when looked through the lens of a 10 year length of stay in a house. Ten years into a 30 year mortgage, one will have paid something like 60% of the total interest on the loan.

[hattmall]

Capitalism begins to break down when the primary driver of purchasing power is availability of debt. Long term debt is particularly antithetical to the efficiencies promoted by a free market.

Add on the fact that a quasi-government body is the primary provider of that debt and not just through the central banking system but in many cases direct to consumers.

[yossarian1408]

Sounds less like capitalism breaking down and more like a regulatory issue.. could fractional reserve banking exist in a competitive banking sector w/o a central bank?