I’ve noticed a trend over the last few months and have a few takeaways to share with you.  Give me 30 seconds and I’ll make two quick points.  There has been a proliferation of $0 down loan programs released over the last little bit.  Some have income caps and some are completely unrestricted. Some are sponsored by the federal government more creative variations are completely privately funded.  For the most part, banks aren’t stupid. There’s a tremendous amount of analytical research, working capital, and calculated exposure that go into implementing every loan program.  Financing 100% of the value of anything entails a substantial amount of risk.  When the beginning value of that leveraged asset is hundreds of thousands of dollars, the liability is monumental to the institution ponying up the funds.

The fact that several new programs have come out is a clear sign that market makers confidently believe that home prices will continue to rise and are about to make another jump upward.  That by itself is reassuring for those of us who have homes and perhaps a little disheartening for those who are longing to buy one.  Additional upward price pressure on housing comes from the other side of the globe where the Chinese government is buying up homes that are not selling to keep their housing prices elevated.

And lastly, I’ll quickly reiterate the idea that someone not having a down payment saved up does not preclude them from purchasing their own place, and the longer they wait, the more expensive homes are going to become.