What's the Rush? Cash for Clunkers
The news is partly good about this government give-away program for trading in a "clunker" for a new car (and the payments that go along with it). Getting up to $4,500 off the price of a new vehicle is great. Response to the new program has been larger than expected. I only wish I had a clunker--neither of my two vehicles qualify!
Car makers and those in the supply chain will be helped by all of the car sales! Why didn't our government propose something like this earlier? Could it be that in the rush to do something to stimulate the economy with $787B in tax-dollar spending that they did not have time to think and evaluate their plan? Could it be that they did not even have time to read the legislation?
Now the news is out that the Cash for Clunkers program has been temporarily suspended by Uncle Sam (USA Today article). Why? The $1B dedicated to the program has been exhausted. Congress is trying to move quickly to add an additional $2B to the program. Here we go in a rush again!
My experience in life is that making hasty decisions often leads to "I-wish-I-had-taken-more-time-to-think-about-that" regrets. Is there any way to slow down the revamp of our health care system ... in the hopes of getting it close to right the first time??
As a side note to this post, home buyers should not rush into buying decisions either. Get your facts, then move forward. If you are a first-time buyer, remember that there is still time to buy a home before the $8,000 tax credit goes away. Home purchases must be closed before December 1, 2009. Jim Gilbert, REALTOR, Heart of Austin Homes
Licensed (#0536692) to sell Real Estate in Austin and in the State of Texas
