Volt would you describe AUS hosing as a mania (akin to the Dutch...

Volt would you describe AUS hosing as a mania (akin to the Dutch and tulips perhaps)??

Seems to me that the herd are in a buying frenzy, afraid of missing out. This is all further hyped on popular television networks. It does have the characteristics of a debt fueled bubble.

The Herengracht Index which is the oldest property index with data from 1628, shows that property moves in a 80 up and down cycle. Currently we only have generations that have strong belief systems that prices only go up and its a bet safe as houses! I remember my grandparents telling me as a child about their friend that lost money on a house he invested in. That would be heresy if spoken today. Gen Y would laugh if you suggested prices could go down that their parents and most grand parents have reinforced their own observation that you cannot lose money buying a home.
Australian Houses are 2.5 times in real terms the 1986 price.

We have 9 of the 10 most unaffordable housing markets in the world. Vancouver is the other.
Historically Australians pay 17% of income on housing. Currently 45%.

The only other thing I think of was houses in Gold. Lets use gold in 2000 when it all started. USD around 250 /oz and now around 1200/oz. 1200/250=4.8 times. So if we divide house prices in 2010 by 4.8; perhaps they havent go up at all?

Heres some charts anyway.



This suggests soon those two curves must meet and the game will be over. Debt fueled bubbles cant keeps exceeding real incomes forever.



as bad as the US?