Generic Idiocy in Markets

I am sick and tired of hearing the same generic stupidity repeated over and over again about the markets.

• “Housing prices will always go up”
• “The stock market will always go up in the long run.”
• “Houses are the best investment you can have”
• “Bonds/CDs are the safest investments”

All of these statements are not bad ideas, however they are NOT absolute principles.  Too many people who are supposed to be in an advisory position (financial advisors, brokers, reporters, U.S. presidents) have really pushed these theories as if they were written in granite.  Not one of them is true all of the time.  Housing prices in certain areas have historically fallen without a bottom as an industry collapses, the stock market goes through lots of periods of recession and stagnation, houses can be a good or bad investment and there are lots of risks associated with bonds & cds.  The key is to be smart and do your research on each individual investment, keeping in mind the big picture.  Don’t be lazy and listen to the idiots who spout all these generic rules-of-thumb that just don’t work.