I saw
this story, and it got me thinking -- is the access to "easy" credit allowing or even encouraging people to make unwise purchases? Not just buying more they they can afford, but paying more then something is worth. It's kind of like what you see on Ebay when bidders suffer from the "red-mist" end up bidding more then the house/car etc. is even worth based on the alternatives.
Not that the Boston area is that cheap, but whenever I hear about real estate values in CA, I can't help but think that everyone suspects that they've overpaid, but kind of has their fingers crossed that the market will hold up by finding one more sucker to pay a little bit more then the current owner has. Kind of like 911s as collectibles - where every new buyer believes that their 911 is worth $10K more then they bought it for just by virtue if them owning it.