The Financialization of Home and the Mortgage Market Crisis

TLDR: In this article, the authors characterize capital switching from the primary, secondary or tertiary circuit to the quaternary circuit of capital as a transition from a "facilitating market" for homeowners in need of credit to one increasingly facilitating global investment.

Abstract: Financialization can be characterized as capital switching from the primary, secondary or tertiary circuit to the quaternary circuit of capital. Housing is a central aspect of financialization. The financialization of mortgage markets demands that not just homes but also homeowners become viewed as financially exploitable. It is exemplified by the securitization of mortgage loans, but also by the use of credit scoring and risk-based pricing. In the past century, mortgage markets were transformed from being a ‘facilitating market’ for homeowners in need of credit to one increasingly facilitating global investment. Since mortgage markets are both local consumer markets and global investment markets, the dynamics of financialization and globalization directly relate homeowners to global investors thereby increasing the volatility in mortgage markets, as the current crisis shows all too well.