A famous song once began “Looking back we could have done it differently” and I think that sums up how we all feel in 2009.

At the start of 2008 everyone was happy, investors were cheering at the continuing rise in house prices, availability of mortgages and so many options to invest their money it was unreal. Fast forward four months to April and the wheels began to fall off in a dramatic and rapid downturn that would leave everyone feeling the bitter cold of recession by the end of the year.

Investment companies began to close their doors and declare administration, mortgage companies decided not to lend to the 90% of people they would have done four months earlier and even the credit card companies started to be a bit more wary about who they would issue their plastic money machine to.

By the end of 2008 high street shops were closing, more and more companies were closing their doors for the final time and the threat of redundancy was hanging over many of the country. The banks had to be bailed out by the Government, with one major player only being saved with a few days to spare. The news that we all expected to hear was confirmed that the country was now in recession and how the media told us, every headline, news program and radio debate show was dominated by how the next two or three years would challenge us all.

It is fair to say that how quickly things changed in the space of 12 months came as quite a shock, but, the leading question is, why did things change so quickly?

The bubble had been ready to burst for many years. The banks were over lending, credit was easier to pick up than the flu and you could invest in property in every corner of the globe, it really was that simple. Property prices were rising at a rate that was just unsustainable and the introduction of the 125% mortgage was surely a sign that things were getting out hand, meaning that you owned an extra 25% of nothing!

As we all look around and wonder who is to blame, it is a very leading question. Do we blame the banks for over lending? Is it the mortgage companies who have allowed people to borrow beyond their means? Is it the investor who has caused the price rise of property by over buying? Are we as individuals to blame for overspending and over borrowing? Or should we firmly look at the Government and ask the question – How did this happen and why was it not spotted and brought under control?

2008 was a year in which we started with so much optimism and ended with more doom and gloom than even the most pessimistic person in the world could have predicted.

So, to finish in the words of another famous song, in 2009 “things can only get better”.