This got me thinking... In the UK, with a more or less stable population, an ageing population, and likewise a relatively stable number of properties, won't we see an increasing number of people who own their property outright? In this scenario isn't the value of a house only important relative to it's desirability to other house owners, not their ability to pay that value based on their income?
Doesn't this mean that the value of property becomes detached from earnings? Maybe I am missing something...