Bring Back American Wealth

The 40-year mortgage is destroying American wealth. America went from 90% home ownership at the beginning of the 20th Century to less than 10% at the end. And it is only getting worse. The 40-year mortgage was a way to jack up the price of homes to make it easier for lower income people to pay more money for a house. Let me say that again, "The 40 year loan was a way to jack up the price of homes to make it easier for lower income people to pay more money for a house." The problem is, no one ever pays one off. Sometimes, you get lucky and sell it for more than you owe and make a profit and at the same time buy another house below market value so you can actually come out a few years ahead. That is not, however, the typical situation. Usually, people pay so much in broker's fees, bank fees, taxes, moving expenses, and etc that they never come out ahead in a housing swap. If you start buying a house when you are 30 years old, and never take out a second mortgage, you can pay it off when you are what, 70?; 5 years into retirement. Houses have gotten too darn expensive and are not a good investment, anymore. In my opinion, banks should never make loans for more than 20 years. People need to be able to pay off their loans and still have some life left. I was smart enough to buy a house cheap enough I could put it on a 20 year mortgage. Hopefully, I'll have some wealth when I get in my 50s.