Foreign countries do not have the fabulous home mortgages Americans can get.

Today's WSJ gives a strong "You got that right!" to the title of my most recent book The American Principal Residence is the Most Advantaged Investment on earth: Maximize Yours!
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Is WSJ reporter Nicole Friedman finally ending her anti-investment in homes crusade? No. It's a James Glynn column about interest rates on home mortgages in Australia, Canada, and New Zealand, the three foreign countries where I have bank accounts. I wish I could have bank accounts in Europe too, but it is essentially impossible for an American.
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Home appreciation has been higher in Australia, Canada, and New Zealand than here.
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BUT—they do not have fixed-rate mortgages.
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Cue the Jaws ominous music.
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The second chapter of my book lists about two dozen mostly spectacular advantages of principal mortgages over all other investment classes—even including rental houses and second homes which are far less advantaged than principal residences.
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One of the biggest is in America you can get a high-loan-to-value mortgage—100% if you are a veteran—30-year, fixed-rate, mortgage with no prepayment penalty. If you understand finance and bonds, you recognize that is fantastic.
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In Australia, Canada, and New Zealand, the mortgage payments are adjustable so higher interest rates are a disaster to homeowners with mortgages and hurt the values even of free-and-clear homes. In the US, higher market rates enable mortgage borrowers to make out like bandits. They PROFIT from the purchasing power of their mortgage payments and balances falling.

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