Joe Friday

As Housing Market Struggles, Homebuilders Focus on Survival

Good Article. The one remaining piece of the puzzle after one analyzes the cash position of each builder, is determining when their loans mature and the cash balances start to decline. The cash builds are really the result of the homebuilders selling their inventory and not reinvesting the proceecds. Rather they are buidling cash in the hopes it will last long enough to get them through the storm. It is the equivalent of "burning the furniture to stay warm'. The builders who have large debt maturities in these next couple of years, may find it hard to survive.

Downside For KB Homes Not Necessarily Priced In

dhk. can you share your insight as a builder as to the realistic decline in lot values in your area, and to the extent that you can, comment on the lot inventory of KB. It seems to me that, for the most part, putting a real value on the lot inventory is the key question in determining the realistic value of the homebuilders.