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Seems a bit general. Sweden is very much in debt because of the housing market. 15 years ago there were little regulation. You could get a 100 year mortgage wit

by sohtym 4y ago

Seems a bit general. Sweden is very much in debt because of the housing market. 15 years ago there were little regulation. You could get a 100 year mortgage with a variable rate and no money down. At the same time the government sold large amounts of public housing at below public market rate. Interest rates went from ~4% to ~1.5%. With no wealth or property taxes, but with tax deductions for renovations and interest rate payments. Most apartment buildings are co-ops, where the co-op have loans as well. Gradually there have been more regulation, but most still have variable rate mortgages which they are personally liable for and with no real a way to declare bankruptcy. Now interest rates will probably reach 4% again so hang on I guess.

belter 4y ago
300 to 400 year mortgages, on a fixed rate, sounds like my kind of deal...
dijit 4y ago
Last time I looked at statistics Swedens debt to GDP was 35%, one of the lowest I saw, which doesn’t really make sense to me when I consider the weakness of the currency, but then again I am just a humble engineer and I have no clue about these things. UK is close to 100% debt to GDP at the moment, the highest in recorded history.
- engineeringwoke 4y ago
  The big issue in northern Europe is private debt, not government debt. Totally reasonable to not know
  - JUNGLEISMASSIVE 4y ago
    [dead]
- bobthepanda 4y ago
  One of the benefits of a high tax regime is that it’s not hard to not need to borrow money if you’re smart about it. I follow some stuff about public transit, and Sweden has lower construction costs than the UK by an order of magnitude.
- brwck 4y ago
  > which doesn’t really make sense to me when I consider the weakness of the currency When there is war, financial crisis, etc, money seeks the safest harbor. The safest harbor in the world today is the US. Rising interest rates, war in ukraine, competition with china, etc means that the world is buying treasuries. Demand for dollars goes up, demand for most other currencies goes down. If there is a significant crisis in the world and the dollar doesn't gain in strength, then we'll know a paradigm shift has occurred.
nonethewiser 4y ago
It’s a measure of household debt. Household debt is a general term that encompasses all type of debt including mortgages. Of course it’s general.
1B05H1N 4y ago
I really was born too late
marginalia_nu 4y ago
Interest is also partially tax deductible, has been for ages. It makes no sense at all and has only served to fan the flames of an already overheated housing market. It's mostly lingered because nobody wants to be the one to rip off the band-aid. It would have been a very good opportunity to do it when the interest rates were negative, but still no. And at this point, it would it's inconceivable. Tens of thousands of households would be pushed over the brink.

by sohtym 4y ago

belter 4y ago

300 to 400 year mortgages, on a fixed rate, sounds like my kind of deal...

dijit 4y ago

Last time I looked at statistics Swedens debt to GDP was 35%, one of the lowest I saw, which doesn’t really make sense to me when I consider the weakness of the currency, but then again I am just a humble engineer and I have no clue about these things. UK is close to 100% debt to GDP at the moment, the highest in recorded history.

engineeringwoke 4y ago
The big issue in northern Europe is private debt, not government debt. Totally reasonable to not know
- JUNGLEISMASSIVE 4y ago
  [dead]
bobthepanda 4y ago
One of the benefits of a high tax regime is that it’s not hard to not need to borrow money if you’re smart about it. I follow some stuff about public transit, and Sweden has lower construction costs than the UK by an order of magnitude.
brwck 4y ago
> which doesn’t really make sense to me when I consider the weakness of the currency When there is war, financial crisis, etc, money seeks the safest harbor. The safest harbor in the world today is the US. Rising interest rates, war in ukraine, competition with china, etc means that the world is buying treasuries. Demand for dollars goes up, demand for most other currencies goes down. If there is a significant crisis in the world and the dollar doesn't gain in strength, then we'll know a paradigm shift has occurred.

nonethewiser 4y ago

It’s a measure of household debt. Household debt is a general term that encompasses all type of debt including mortgages. Of course it’s general.

1B05H1N 4y ago

I really was born too late

marginalia_nu 4y ago

Interest is also partially tax deductible, has been for ages. It makes no sense at all and has only served to fan the flames of an already overheated housing market. It's mostly lingered because nobody wants to be the one to rip off the band-aid. It would have been a very good opportunity to do it when the interest rates were negative, but still no. And at this point, it would it's inconceivable. Tens of thousands of households would be pushed over the brink.