U.S. homes lose $2 trillion in value in '08

[Crewleader]

Home prices are have been hit hard, yet there is still no end in sight to the foreclosure crisis, according to Zillow.com.

By Les Christie, CNNMoney.com staff writer
Last Updated: December 15, 2008: 11:02 AM ET

NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- American homeowners will collectively lose more than $2 trillion in home value by the end of 2008, according to a report released Monday.

The real estate Web site Zillow.com calculated that home values have dropped 8.4% year-over-year during the first three quarters of 2008, compared with the same period of 2007.

Some 11.7 million Americans are now "underwater," owing more on their mortgage balances than their homes are worth.

http://money.cnn.com/2008/12/15/real_estate/underwater_borrowers_near_12million/index.htm?postversion=2008121511

[madrchsod]

1. that`s some price correction

pretty soon houses may actually be what their true value is. now the banks have to face reality...adjust mortgages or own property that will never sell.

[lumberjack_jeff]

2. That's all? I mean think about it.

We gave away one-third of that amount to bail out banks who were "losing money because of defaulted mortgages."

Why is a house a unique category of asset in which you default on your debt when the asset loses its first dollar of value?