Bubble Isn't All That Big.(National Association of Realtors and the Mortgage Bankers Association)(real estate values)(Column)

Many times in the pages of this newspaper, we've quoted "experts" expressing concern about the possibility of a bubble in real estate values that is liable to burst. Why, this editor has sometimes even weighed in among the worry mongers himself.

But one point must be conceded. If there is a national "bubble" in real estate prices, it's waiting an awfully long time to rear its ugly head.

And economists who discount the risk of a bubble, among them the chief economists of the National Association of Realtors and the Mortgage Bankers Association, have some pretty solid evidence to back up the contention that at least on a national scale, there is not likely a "bubble" in home values.

Douglas Duncan, the MBA's top economist, made that point pretty persuasively in a recent meeting with editors at Source Media, the publisher of this newspaper.

In judging the impact of a potential "bubble" on home prices, it's worth noting that not every property is backing a particularly risky loan. In fact, more than a third of homes - 34.6% - carry no mortgage debt whatsoever. The owners of these homes won't be defaulting on any loans if their property values decline. Moreover, ...