Cramer rants, but are you listening?

Happy October everyone!

A few days ago I saw Jim Cramer, the host of CNBC's Mad Money tell a national audience not to buy a house for at least a year, or you will lose money. Many thoughts crossed my mind. First what makes Mr. Cramer think that his revelations are so brilliant? Business colleges and talking heads have been forecasting the fall of the real estate market every year for the past 5 years. You knew at some point they were going to get it right!

Second, people don't buy homes just for the purpose of investments. People move up, have children, get promoted, downsize, they buy homes for any number of reasons! There are plenty of people out there gushing with delight in the bad news concerning the housing market. Maybe these people think it brings them headlines or makes them controversial. But what if Mr. Cramer is wrong? What if interest rates drop and all of the sudden homes are more affordable than they have been in years? What if someone finds the home of their dreams and it's 30% lower in price today than it was a year ago, should they hold off buying because Jim Cramer says so? In my mind here's a better question, is Mr. Cramer prepared to reimburse everyone who listens to him and passes up a great deal, and then ends up spending more if prices go up??

So the next time Jim Cramer tells you to don't do something, I hope you will consider a few "dont's" of your own: don't watch his show and don't buy his books and then let's see what he has to say.