Sure if you bought 10 years ago the house has already increased 100-200% (once again before inflation), but for someone currently looking at investment choices that is completely irrelevant. The only thing that matters is what's going to happen in the future.
Money in a savings account isn't going anywhere after inflation but it's still better than on a new mortgage for a house losing value (once again before inflation). I'll take +2.5% minus inflation before i take -x% minus inflation
Or to put it another way: If you currently (ie. not 10 years ago but today) have a few hundred grand sitting idle, are you better off a) Diversifying across blue chip stocks, gold, and cash b) Sitting it in a savings account until the property bust ends and snapping up a bargain c) Buying a property now
Now whether a or b is more suitable really depends on an individual's timeframes and risk appetite. I can't see any scenario where c is the best option at this point in time, unless you are just desperate to buy a house and don't care if you lose money in the medium term.
