Just a quick annoyance after the last post...

According to another article at NPR's website, 65% of Americans own a home.

No.

This is nitpicking to an extent, but I think it's an example of euphemistic marketing at a societal level. If you pay monthly on a mortgage, you do not own your home. The bank owns your home. If you stop paying, they will have you removed from the property that they own.

The same applies to automobiles, though I less often hear the same mistake made in that context. If I ask someone if they own their car, they will often specify that they are making payments on it, implying they don't yet own it. If I ask someone if they own their home, the same distinction is not usually made and mortgage payments somehow constitute ownership.

Bottom line, you only truly own your home when your mortgage is paid off.