This is the golden era of contrarian economics. Its simply heaven. Its a pleasure to take a break from dry rambling economic theory that is detached from the real world.
There are a slew of great writers out with a lot of new ways to think and see the housing market. Here are a few recent articles that were written by some of my favorites:
* Daniel Gross who is a regular contributor to Slate and Newsweek, writes about the The Spinal Tap Economy: The real problem with the Ultra-Wealthy. He talks about Robert Frank’s term Richistan and its application to the current economy. It relates to housing in that the upper price strata is among the best sectors in the country. Another favorite is Wall Street Will Abandon New York …and all the other lousy post-9/11 economic predictions.
* David Leonhardt who is a columnist for the New York Times who wrote Good News: Housing’s Down, Market’s Off, Oil’s Up recently. However, my soft spot is the slew of interactive charts he championed on the New York Times web site including: Is It Better to Buy or Rent?, How Much House Can Your Salary Buy? and How Class Works.
* Peter Coy is an economics editor for Businessweek who writes some interesting stuff. A recent article attributes the surge in homeownership to loose lending standards and the debt crisis.
But I digress…