bob toll is correct. buyers need more skin in the game. 18% huh. wasnt there some study that said defaults would peak around 20-25%?

There have been studies all across the board, but it will go up. I'm in the process of selling a SFR rental property of my own. 3 offers, all of them FHA with the absolute minimum down payment (3.5%) and buyers buying at the top of what they were pre-approved for and asking for closing costs since they can't provide. This won't end well.

yup. pretty standard. what i worry about is the people who can afford to buy. a buddy is droppng $500K for a (peak price) $1.2M condo in san diego. its a deal. its only slightly higher than construction costs. 20th floor 1 block from gas lamp, near petco, walk to his office. weve gone through the thing 10 ways to sunday and the only thing that makes me nervous for him is what happens in 5 years when interest is up and things have (presumably) changed? he says he wants to keep it and his dad is in on the deal for a vacation property when my friend leaves it. so hes not too concerned about it. i have a feeling the lingering effects this time around will be a lot longer than usual if we dont permanently allow low down, tax credits, govt financing and artificial interest. i fear this is not becoming an orderly unwinding as people hope.