When I bought me house what I eventually decided is you can't use ordinary financial metrics for owner occupied housing. The reason is buying a house on credit is essentially the only investment you can make with the money you have available for housing.

My opinion is the issue with renting and housing in general is the world wide financialization of real estate. It's being treated as a primary investment instead of the secondary investment it is. Some fraction of people are getting exceedingly wealthy but there are deep negative effects.

My bet is the crashing fertility rates are likely what's going to put a stop to it. Notable every 15-20 years we have a bigger than the previous financial crisis. Once populations start to decline the bottom will fall out.

>> My bet is the crashing fertility rates are likely what's going to put a stop to it.

Crushing fertility rates will not drive real estate prices down. It will create ghost cities, but business centers or any other desirable to live place will have high prices, maybe even higher as people are going to escape from dying towns.