How well or bad the economy does is in large part measured by the housing market. When the housing market is good the economy is good. When it is bad the economy is bad. When it is good houses are getting built, banks lend money, and people are buying homes.
When houses are not being built there are a lot of people affected. People in construction are not hired and therefore they do not make money to support themselves or their families. Companies that sell material to build houses do not make money so they cannot hire more people.
The manufacturing companies that make the building materials go without orders and they have to lay off employees in their plants. Banks do not loan money to the banks keep interest rates up. With the higher cost of borrowing money people do not seek loans and this creates a situation that makes it hard for anyone to get a loan to buy a house.
It is a self defeating merry go round. Much of our economic situation is all about the home market. But as many real estate agent knows it has its ups and its down times. The government is very involved in the housing market. Many government regulations control the house market. The government for all intents and purposes controls everything from house construction to the money lending business that funds home purchases.
The government controls the bank who lends the money. The government controls the real estate broker who is involved in the home sale by setting the rules agents must adhere to. The government tries to encourage home sales by offering income tax credits to those who are first time home buyers. They encourage home buying by giving tax savings to home owners allowing them to write off on their income tax their interest payments.
This is an age old reason why people want to own a home, so they can pay less tax. We simply take for granted this benefit when in reality it is a major way government controls the home market. There are many factors involved in our economy but no other area is controlled or determined by the government than the housing market.
Perhaps because the government knows that there is stability in home ownership. Or perhaps they know that if people own homes they have to keep busy trying to keep their homes so they have no time to worry about what the government is doing. Or maybe the government believes so much that home ownership is part of the pursuit of happiness and all that.
Whatever the reason the housing market is the government. And whether that is good or bad depends on how you look at it. The housing market will always have its good times and its bad times. It will always have people who try to make a killing in the market and those who simply want to own a home and raise their family. And the government will always be there controlling the market.