Daniel Herkes

Housing Starts at Underappreciated New Low

We have been this low before. You and I are just too young to remember the depression. This slowdown will be memorable for another reason - it's going to go on for a long time.


On May 19 04:39 PM HardwoodFlooring wrote:

> How low can it go? These numbers are, as you say, "mind blowing".
> We have never been this low for this long.

As Housing Market Struggles, Homebuilders Focus on Survival

Good analysis. A couple of questions.

" . . . You've got markets like Las Vegas, for instance, where 60% to 70% of the resales are now either short sales or foreclosures." Will the halt in foreclosures depress the prices to the point that a potential buyer will look to a house only as a domicile? Prior to the recession, houses were discretionary purchases, i.e. the McMansions.

" . . . sacrificing margins for sales" Since the builders are sitting, and not adding to the surplus, will the next housing trend be so marginal as to be trivial?