It seems like home ownership is a huge factor here. Several studies have shown that home ownership correlates with higher unemployment. Owning a home greatly de

It seems like home ownership is a huge factor here. Several studies have shown that home ownership correlates with higher unemployment. Owning a home greatly decreases mobility and can cause you to stick to a region far longer than is necessary. I can't help but wonder how things might have been different for the OP's father, if after the first layoff, he had chosen to sell his home and move to another market experiencing growth and extremely low rates of unemployment [0]. My father also struggled for several years after moving back to Brazil, where ageism is alive and well. He had tons of experience, even founding his own company, being its CEO and growing it to 300 people back in the 90s when that was a much harder thing to accomplish. He then ran another company as a CEO. Right now he is just beginning to do reasonably well again as a consultant, but he had to work hard to diversify where he gets work from. In his case it is his aging mother that keeps him in Brazil instead of returning to the US to a market that is more likely to employ him. He doesn't have the luxury of an option that will afford him mobility like people with a home to sell do. For those with that luxury, selling your home makes sense. Wishful thinking that long bouts of unemployment can't happen to you is a naïve and dangerous. [0] http://www.bls.gov/web/metro/laummtrk.htm http://www.bls.gov/web/metro/laummtrk.htm