The Cost of Living: Fueled by Excess Credit, Not Scarcity

With Washington decrying the so-called “Affordability Crisis,” it’s worth remembering that rhetoric around affordability– or, in Spain’s case, housing– isn’t benevolent or even neutral. In both countries, the problem isn’t lack of credit, corporate greed, or giant corporations buying homes. It’s the continual debasement of money and relentless intervention in housing markets. The following article was originally published by the Mises Institute. The opinions expressed do not necessarily reflect those of Peter Schiff or SchiffGold.

With the idea of banning large investors from buying real estate, President Trump has brought to the forefront the issue of real estate. This has been recently at the top of popular discourse, and politicians and pundits of all colors have grabbed the opportunity to push their own agendas.

And one of the ways to sway public opinion towards one’s goals is semantics. If we can rename something to our advantage, half the job of convincing people is done. It is a lot more important than most people think.

My mother tongue is not English but Spanish. This has allowed me to compare the two semantic strategies that the Spanish-speaking governments and the English ones have performed on this issue.