excellent point - buying a new car is a good example, allowing someone to take out a 7 year loan to payoff a new car, allows the car companies to simply charge more for them - as a large portion of people make their decisions based on being able to afford the monthly payment, not the total price.

That does not seem like a good example. The car industry is extremely competitive and capital intensive. Margins are so thin on the lower prices sedans that some companies (GM, Ford) have just given up on the segment.

I think easily available loads are largely responsible for the high cost of college education in the US.