How the Real Estate Bubble Differs from the Dotcom Bubble

At the turn of the century, day trading—tech stocks in particular—was the great American past time. Everyone was investing in fly-by-night companies that had little more than a .com bolted onto their idiotic business plan. That, needless to say, didn't end well. Too many people saw their savings wiped out when the companies they invested in crashed and burned.

But as bad as it is now? For people living in Northern California, unless you bought a home within the past few years, your real-estate investment is still looking smart. Check out this chart: the median price of a home in Marin County, while down 26% from its historic peak last June, is still up 56% since 2000.