Real estate prices have gone up in the past year. This was mainly driven by gulf Arab investors and Lebanese expatriates, who have come and invested in the country. The price of real estate today is well beyond the means of the regular Lebanese wage earners. There is a potential that the price bubble won't last and that eventually it will burst leaving many who have bought mortgages with similar problems as the mortgage owners in the United States.
Unfortunately Lebanese banks are not learning from other people's mistakes. They are making it easier for people to get mortgages they can't afford. All this is bound to create problems when the day inevitably comes and the bubble bursts.
Just a thought.
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