But that is a bit of a gamble for the potential house-buyer.

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Experimental evidence suggests that people are more willing to gamble with money they consider house money.

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"It's a gamble, but we couldn't see the house increasing in value much more than it is worth now, " Silverman adds.

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Yvonne, who is pregnant and dreams of a better life for her child, drains away the hours watching B-Westerns in an all-night grind house while her layabout boyfriend, Homer, goes out to drink and gamble.

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