Is The U.S. Economy So Bad We Need To Open Foreign Bank Accounts?

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Mark Dotzour of Texas A&M’s Real Estate Center is one of my most trusted real estate resources. Where he goes, I  follow. So I guess I need to head to Canada and open up a bank account. Dotzour told a group of Austin Realtors that the U.S. is in serious economic trouble that is so bad he’s opened a bank account in Canada where he can wire money in an emergency. He said that job growth rates of 1.1% in Austin will be like a gold mine compared to the rest of the unemployed country, and he pounded on the lack of job creation and major recent layoffs as hammering down the struggling economy:

“Our country is running out of gas again,” Dotzour said, noting that several economic indicators that had rebounded are now losing steam or have plateaued.

Dotzour said many people have stopped trying to find work.

“The labor participation rate has dropped from 66 percent to 64 percent in just the past two years,” Dotzour said.

“The policies are just failing. They’re not getting people back to work.”

Sounds a lot like what I heard in San Francisco at Real Estate Connect last week: less than 1% U.S. economic growth, one of every five people unemployed, which makes it mighty tough for people to buy homes. Washington is spinning like a top. They called this not a Depression but a “Deep Recession”. Oh and the banks are not lending unless your credit history mirror’s Bill Gates. Can 2012 come fast enough?

That’s when Dotzour thinks we may start to see some improvement, AFTER the presidential election. But if the current administration hangs on to the White House, I’m afraid we are going to be in a massive pickle until 2016.

It’s better here than elsewhere, but for how long? I welcome your thoughts.

Candy Evans, founder and publisher of CandysDirt.com, is one of the nation’s leading real estate reporters.

No Comments

  1. Micheal on August 4, 2011 at 1:26 pm

    Spoken like a tru Texan with head in the ground. Remember this is all the after effects of Bush Jr. All economists agree this is the result of wanton spending on military expenditures with no new “inventions” trickling down to employ the masses in the production and lack of significant public “good” expenditures on infrastructure needs and finally lack of revenue promoted by the current Congressional attempt at another run at a futile TRICKLE DOWN economic policy. You know we shouldn’t have let all these people support or fund all the banks a couple of years ago …ask you A&M friend where we would be now if we hadn’t….chances are more people would be panhandling and even less of a recovery than what we have experienced had McCain and Palin have gotten in rest assured we would be experiencing the lawlessness of the wild west and a current economic environment like Soilent Green

  2. Micheal on August 4, 2011 at 1:26 pm

    Spoken like a tru Texan with head in the ground. Remember this is all the after effects of Bush Jr. All economists agree this is the result of wanton spending on military expenditures with no new “inventions” trickling down to employ the masses in the production and lack of significant public “good” expenditures on infrastructure needs and finally lack of revenue promoted by the current Congressional attempt at another run at a futile TRICKLE DOWN economic policy. You know we shouldn’t have let all these people support or fund all the banks a couple of years ago …ask you A&M friend where we would be now if we hadn’t….chances are more people would be panhandling and even less of a recovery than what we have experienced had McCain and Palin have gotten in rest assured we would be experiencing the lawlessness of the wild west and a current economic environment like Soilent Green

  3. Candy Evans on August 4, 2011 at 9:20 pm

    Micheal, I agree with your assessment of the wanton military spending. Also bad housing policies. But DC right now is making more policy (ie Obamacare) to hinder the recovery, and housing, than help.

    • Boomer Baby on August 8, 2011 at 11:06 am

      I agree with Michael. We're reaping the consequences of bad policy and decisions that have dragged down our economy (i.e. funding two wars….including our foray into Libya; unregulated and unscrupulous mortgage lenders and practices that led to our housing meltdown; Wall Street bankers in a high-stakes game of 'hot potato' passing along bundles of bad debt; unaffordable healthcare coupled with high unemployment; rising costs of Medicare and Social Security.

      Mix that and more in with a Congress split on idealogical lines and politicians more interested in the next election who are unwilling to make hard decisions. Better in 2012? Try another 5 plus years.

      We're in for a 'long slog' … not a 'slam dunk' as Rummie once famously forecast (and I realize he wasn't talking about the economy….but it's one of the unfortunate decisions that has affected where we're at right now).

  4. Candy Evans on August 4, 2011 at 9:20 pm

    Micheal, I agree with your assessment of the wanton military spending. Also bad housing policies. But DC right now is making more policy (ie Obamacare) to hinder the recovery, and housing, than help.

    • Boomer Baby on August 8, 2011 at 11:06 am

      I agree with Michael. We're reaping the consequences of bad policy and decisions that have dragged down our economy (i.e. funding two wars….including our foray into Libya; unregulated and unscrupulous mortgage lenders and practices that led to our housing meltdown; Wall Street bankers in a high-stakes game of 'hot potato' passing along bundles of bad debt; unaffordable healthcare coupled with high unemployment; rising costs of Medicare and Social Security.

      Mix that and more in with a Congress split on idealogical lines and politicians more interested in the next election who are unwilling to make hard decisions. Better in 2012? Try another 5 plus years.

      We're in for a 'long slog' … not a 'slam dunk' as Rummie once famously forecast (and I realize he wasn't talking about the economy….but it's one of the unfortunate decisions that has affected where we're at right now).

  5. Candy Evans on August 8, 2011 at 12:20 pm

    5 more years is exactly what they said last week at Inman… calling this a "Deep Recession".

    It's like it has all come to pass.

  6. Candy Evans on August 8, 2011 at 12:20 pm

    5 more years is exactly what they said last week at Inman… calling this a "Deep Recession".

    It's like it has all come to pass.

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