Each month, the Journal of Financial Planning poses a question online based on the current issue's "10 Questions" interview. Comment on the question and respond to your colleagues' feedback.

November 2008

David Kittle believes "creative lending" in residential real estate is here to stay, while also asserting that the pendulum has "swung too far" in tightening credit standards for borrowers. He also maintains that homeownership "remains the single best way for Americans to accrue personal wealth." You can read more about Kittle's perspective in our November 2008 "10 Questions" interview (PDF | 216KB).

• Have your clients been lured into an unsustainable residential real estate investment by the appeal of "creative" financing and a naïve (in retrospect) belief in the perpetual appreciation of the property's value? If so, what are you advising them to do?
• To what extent, if any, should one's primary residence be viewed as an "investment?"
• Are you recommending that your clients invest in distressed real estate? If so, how?
• How long do you believe the U.S. economy will suffer the impact of the bursting of the residential real estate bubble?