Cindy S

The American Dream Is Overbought and Overbuilt

One factor in this that's not often covered is that many of the new houses are not built very well, and will probably need replacing soon. Maybe that was part of the plan (of the industry)? I've seen estimates of what percent of new homes have serious defects that range from 15% (Consumer Reports), to over 90% (PATH). When I pass new developments I can see some shortcuts builders are taking, industry-wide, that will certainly contribute to the early demise, or expensive repairs, of these homes. We already have a "disposable housing" mentality (just as we do with all products). Just look at the number of non-defective older homes that were torn down to make way for McMansions. The irony, I guess, is that the McMansions are even more temporary, due to shoddy construction. On a slightly different topic, I believe the industry gloom and doom is just the industry angling for a federal bail out of some kind. Whether it's to urge the feds to lower interest rates and loosen lending guidelines again, or an actual bailout, I don't know. But I do not believe the industry would admit there's anything wrong unless there was an agenda behind it. They still aren't admitting to the shoddy construction.