The financial press did its job. It scared Americans so badly about a possible recession that now we might just have one.

One of Realty Times' contributors, author David Reed, says he saw a headline that said, "Inflation highest in 17 years." Consumer prices are at 4.1 percent. The Federal Reserve is comfortable when inflation is between one and three percent.

Right now core inflation (excluding energy and food prices) is at 2.2 percent. That's a far cry from the 12 percent inflation the nation suffered through in the 1970s.

He says he wishes people would use their heads and not believe everything the fear-mongering press has to say. We're no where near modern history's worst case of inflation and recession.

And he's right. Fear is what makes people stop spending, and that's when they return to fundamentals.

They buy what they need, not just what they can finance.

And what we need most is food, energy and shelter.

Everything else is on clearance. That's what economists call a recession.

The bottom line is we spend too much money on junk. And we think we need bigger houses to store all the stuff we have.

What we really have is an upside-down economy. Consumers are in charge of 72 percent of the economy. We can't all be consumers -- we have to produce something. What we should have is more manufacturing and jobs right here in the good old US of A.

The real villain of the flagging economy isn't housing -- it's consumers trying to support more products than they can afford. Banks accelerated the problem by lending money to poor risks. Those poor risks did exactly what was in their nature -- they spent beyond their means.

And that's got the rest of the nation in a panic, except for the smart consumers. They'll take advantage of other people's panic. They'll buy better properties cheaper.

If you're an investor, you want to keep those scary headlines coming. If you're a seller, you want them to go away.

Published: January 21, 2008

Use of this article without permission is a violation of federal copyright laws.

Blanche Evans is the award-winning senior editor of Realty Times, the Internet's leading independent real estate news service. She is featured daily on the Realty Times Video Network in the "Realty Viewpoint" segment. Blanche has been named one of the "25 Most Influential People In Real Estate" by REALTOR Magazine, and has been twice recognized as a "notable." In 2005, she was named "Top Reporter Covering the NAR" by Delahaye-Bacon's. Blanche is a renowned author of five real estate books. Her newest, Bubbles, Booms and Busts: Make Money In Any Real Estate Market, McGraw-Hill, was rave-reviewed by The New York Times. She was also selected from hundreds of real estate experts to contribute to Donald Trump's book, Trump: The Best Real Estate Advice I Ever Received: 100 Top Experts Share Their Strategies, Rutledge Hill Press, and is featured on page 68. Order Now Review - Honors In 2006, Blanche was selected among scores of candidates to author two consumer real estate guidebooks for the National Association of Realtors: The NAR Guide to Home Buying, and The NAR Guide to Home Selling, Wiley & Sons. She is currently planning two new books for the NAR and its members.       Known for her keen insight into real estate industry issues and for her ability to make complex subjects easy to understand, Blanche is a sought-after keynote and continuing education speaker. Real estate organizations from MLSs, to brokerages, to franchisors, to associations hire her to provide up-to-the-minute analysis of real estate industry news and advice on how to improve revenues. Her passionate delivery, peppered with stinging wit, is a huge hit with audiences and fans. Don Klein, CEO Greater Nashville Association of Realtors, Blanche Evans, Richard Courtney, president 2007, GRAR "The GNAR membership meeting last week featured Blanche Evans as the keynote speaker. Her comments and insights resonated extremely well with those in attendance and we have had many requests for copies of her PowerPoint Presentation. She was a terrific part of the membership meeting and convention program!" - Don Klein, CEO Greater Nashville Association of Realtors Coverage from WSMV, Nashville - 8-14-2007 That Interview Guy - Get Inside The Head Of Today's Generation 2007 AE Institute Session - To purchase 2006 AE Institute Session - Parts 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 HouseValues Mastermind call - Parts 1 2 Blanche's fireside chat with Jeremy Conaway, HAR - Click here. To contact Blanche, email her at . For more articles by Blanche, click here.