The real estate “bubble” that took place in Japan in 1986, where real estate prices became so outrageous it is said land in Tokyo’s Ginza district was going for $139,000 per square foot! But then things went South, way South. People were losing 80% of the equity in their homes And this lasted for 17 years only to experience an upturn in 2003.
Is this where some parts of the United States are headed? Absolutely not. But according to Wikipedia (I’m not sure how accurate this is but it’s the point that matters), the US lost $20 trillion in investments in the Japanese stock market and the real estate collapse. So shouldn’t we know better? Shouldn’t the CEO’s, CFO’s of the largest global financial institutions – who I assume were around then – know that too much development, building and loose lending will eventually end up hurting the economy in the long run?
Is it time for CEO’s to learn the basics?
