Quote:
Originally Posted by peter12
It all makes sense. Very clear sense. This so-called recovery is driven by gauzy employment numbers, increasing costs of living, high spending driven by low interest rates, and the virtual disappearance of the lower middle class.
We are seeing something new that is not explainable by traditional economic models. There is no business cycle anymore. Increasing technological returns have changed everything.
As for my previous comment, it would be a good idea for middle earners to stop spending so much money, and start putting as many assets into investments. That is the only reliable source of stability in this economy. The labour market sucks, and I don't see that changing for a long time.
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You are saying a whole lot of nothing, and I am having trouble following your point. I live in the suburbs of Richmond, Va. We don't really seem to have high peaks or valleys in our economy and have a metro population about the same as Calgary. Without a real dominant industry, we seem to follow the general ups and downs of the country as a whole.
Sure, this all anecdotal, but 5-6 years ago, every construction project shut down, and nothing really new started for 3-4 years. In the last couple years, there has been a huge turnaround and everything has started up again. The restaurant industry is thriving, all sorts of large, upscale stores are moving in, IT jobs are in demand, sales jobs are in demand, large suburban houses are selling fast, and on and on.
Housing has recovered, but is still very affordable. Generally, cost of living around here has stayed very reasonable (far,far cheaper than Calgary by every measure). I don't know anyone (kids looking for part time, middle class, lower middle class) who has a hard time finding work. I work at a place that gives market based raises every year, and we've seen standard 3-4% raises for the last 3 year after being frozen for 3 years.
Maybe I'm way off base,but I'd think that our situation is pretty typical for mid-sized cities in this region. It could all fall apart I suppose, but for now things seems pretty solid economically.