You know what never happens? This never happens:

Exponential acceleration in the direction of a trend is never followed by stabilization at a new plateau. It does not matter if the chart represents Gold futures, or house prices, or population levels: extreme moves are followed by collapses, not by plateaus.

The difficulty, of course, lies in picking the top. The graves are filled with the ruined balance sheets of those who tried to pick the top too early.