From: Steve 
Newsgroups: misc.consumers misc.consumers.frugal-living misc.consumers.house
Subject: Re: Why buy a house?
Date: Thu, 15 Jul 2004 13:40:02 -0700

"Timm Simpkins"  wrote:
>> >not be able to afford it then.  House prices go up - and fast.  They may
>slow down for a period, but they always go up.
>>
>> No, they don't always go up.  Sometimes they go down.  Or people just
>> won't sell until they can break even, just like in the stock market.

>You can give yourself some insurance as to its future value.  The more
>expensive the house, the more apt the value is to increase

This is true, except when it's not.  You're probably better off with
mid-range houses, somewhere around the median price for your area.
Higher-end houses can go thru long periods of time when there simply
are not many buyers in the market.