RE:Is the sky really falling?
Obscure1 wrote: 5 year fixed mortgages at TD are currently 2.85%
5 year variable closed mortgages are currently at 1.55%.
Obscure, TD is offering bank prime -1.34 for 5 year variable closed mortgage. I know because I just renew for one of my rental properties. Nobody should be paying 1.55% for a mortgage these days. That's highway robbery. :-D. The biggest mistake I made in personal finance was to deleverage too early.
The sky is not falling and it will remain blue and clear for as long as the rate of inflation is higher than the interest offered on fixed income. Times have changed. I heard people say back in the 80's they were paying 18% for loans, but then they were also getting 18% on deposits. Look at the current situation. 1.26% mortgage and 15% inflation and .2% on premium savings account. (TD E-savings offers even less). People have no options other than taking on more risks than they're comfortable with to ward off this inflation blow.
This market, if it will topple, it's because of excessive debt. People are fearless when it comes to piling on debt. From HELOCs to margin to car loans and credit card loans...just look at the banks' record earnings for a rough idea.
Cheap debt is like booze. You're awaken for a moment to sobriety only to plunge right into drunkenness. The feds can raise rates all they want. If rates are not high enough to compensate for loss of purchasing power, we'll just see this party being in full effect. I'm buying anything and everything I can get my hands on--things the government can't print out of thin air, such as good companies like SU.
@NPCexe: Today's SU's erection was not due to the effect of Viagra. :-). We'll see many more days like these to come. Hope we'll be trading in the low 40's after the next ER. I can't believe it's anything less than stellar.