>Actually a very poor example. A common thread of many who don't agree with how our govt works is thatat some point in time, those in power discovered they could control certain aspects of the economy by making the military a massive economy unto it's own.

Actually I think you're both right. The main reason the houses are still selling here is that Virginia Beach is yet another military/tourist resort, with one naval base (in the middle of the city, with no access to any body of water!) is the largest employer. And yes, I've seen houses in my near neighborhood get sold... though not as fast as a year or two ago. And the trend that the larger houses are losing is something we spotted between these naval bases.

>>Actually, of all of the people I know who lost money during the dotcom fiasco, none of them worked in the IT field at all. Also, being right next to a major military installation, houses are still selling as usual here. There are houses continously for sale here and continuously selling as military get reassigned. With the guaranteed income of the military, loans are still easy to get. Most folks I know all had fixed rate mortgages too - no ARMs. My neighbor across the street, and 4 other houses all sold within 60 days recently. My neighbors house just two days ago.