Ol'89r said:
In all of my years living in this country, I have never been more ashamed of my political leaders. :|
Boy isnt that the truth!
The credit crunch is real - it just wont hit everyone, or if it hits, it might not be obvious. Chrysler stopped offering leases - that is real and big. Those with good solid credit histories, making decent downpayments, and that can afford to finance over shorter terms wont likely find much different. Those with poor credit, low down, or wanting a real long loan term are more likely to either be turned down, or flat wont be offered the "favorable" terms many have come to expect in recent years. To me it seems I hear fewer of the "troubled credit", "we finance anyone" "no money down" sort of offers. Local news reports have mentioned car dealers finding some potential buyers being turned down for financing. I recently spoke to a local dealer who mentioned sales are down signficantly. A buddy of mine that runs a small scale used motorcycle dealership - who had a banner year (fuel efficient street bikes) this year, was unable to get financing for some improvements and expansion plans.
Both predatory lending practices, and consumers all to willing to take advantage of rather inappropriate loan terms, or flat out borrowing to much are both to blame. I have little sympathy for lenders who made bad lending decisions - likewise, I have little sympathy for people who decided to go buy the new house that was $100,000 more than they should of spent simply because they had a lender qualify them for some "jumbo" loan.
It is a f'ed up mess - and while I agree something HAD to be done, I am not so sure the bail out bill was the right something. I make my payments on time, am not in excessive debt, yet am paying for the stupid decisions of others, and in many cases, others who likely have annual incomes 5 times (or more) than what I do. I dont like regulation for regulations sake - but this is a case where the lack of our "leaders" being willing to do their job means we all pay.