Now is the time to buy - redux

Just as the median price of a home in Bend has plummeted from $398,000 to $189,000, real estaters gathered Monday to hear the latest forecasts on their business.

What they heard was prices are down, but sales are up. Inventories are down.

Oh, and discourage foreclosures through a marketing campaign.

You see, those who walk away from their homes hurt their neighborhoods and their community, we're told. Oh, and they further drive down home values.

Yet, banks can, and do, default on their properties and they're considered savvy, shrewd and successful.

Why shouldn't the common homeowner aspire to the same things?

Because the whole system is based on the rubes at the bottom subsidizing the rich at the top so they can make more reckless investments and be bailed out for doing so.

If the folks at the bottom act like those at the top, the marketplace could become more unstable. But that's capitalism. Just as banks look out for their own financial well being, so should individuals.

If defaulting on your home loan saves your sanity and improves your financial outlook, you should do it.

A new scare tactic is emerging to discourage defaults. More employers, we're told, are relying on credit checks when screening potential workers.

In Oregon, legislators are trying to bar that practice. The local paper, naturally, is opposed to such a law. But, if a developer with a dubious credit history were in the same boat, the paper believes such invasion of privacy is unwarranted.

The credit-check scare, though, is just a ruse for not hiring someone. So many Americans have defaulted on credit cards and home loans during this Great Recession that it's hard to hire someone who hasn't. Besides, if someone does their job well enough, what does their credit history matter?

Look at the major Wall Street banks. They've behaved recklessly and nearly destroyed themselves along with the world's economy. Yet, they were rewarded for such behavior. Billions in bonuses were handed out last year.

The bottom line: Don't fall for the scare tactics. Look our for yourself and your family. They come first before your neighbors or your community. Act like a banker. It's in your best interest.