Iappreciate the response of Richard Hall to my previous letter.

Our legislators and our New Jersey residents are missing the lesson of history.

Free enterprise is the freedom of people and private businesses to operate competitively for profit with minimal government regulation.

In the early 1900s, there were no restrictions on where people could live or buy property. Banks gave mortgages and were responsible to collect the payment. In 1935, the average weekly wage was $35, bread 8 cents, a new car was $640, and a house was reasonably priced. Saving their dollars for a house down payment was long and difficult. The young people rented a room or a house, or lived with their family until they saved enough to buy a home. They had pride in their new home.

The lack of free enterprise is government control.

The government started controlling the housing market by legislation in 1977. The control escalated with continued legislation in 1980, 1982, 1986, 1993 and 2003. These laws created modern mortgage products such as adjustable-rate mortgages, balloon payment mortgages, no down payment, and interest-only mortgages. The banks were penalized if they did not comply. The banks lost their ability to run a bank with a sound business practice.

People decided they didn't want one house, they would buy several and sell them in six months for profit. There was a frenzy to buy thousands of houses, so everyone kept raising the price until we have a housing bubble.

In 1985, COAH was established by a court case in Mount Laurel.

The government stated the banks did not have to hold and collect the mortgage to maturity of 20 or 30 years. The bank could bundle the mortgages together and sell them to Wall Street, who sold them to businesses and other countries. The bank did not have to be concerned with the owner paying the mortgage.

Government controlling the banks caused the housing bubble. COAH is outdated. Houses became so expensive and taxes so high that no one can afford to live in New Jersey. People are moving out of the state permanently.

I propose the following: rescind COAH back to its inception in 1985. In 24 years, it has not worked. When banks have the freedom to be run in a responsible manner like a business, and government allows free enterprise to work, the value of houses will come down and stabilize.

We need to keep the freedom that our forefathers fought to establish. Expanding government in the name of COAH from 1986- 2009 was un-American.

Let's correct it now.
Gail Meltesen
Rumson