Posted on 06/16/2010 7:15:24 AM PDT by Stevenc131
Home construction plunged last month and building permits also fell, the latest signs that the construction industry won't fuel the economic recovery....single-family homes fell 17 percent, the largest monthly drop since January 1991...Overall new homes and apartments were down 10 percent in May to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 593,000, the Commerce Department said Wednesday. April's figure was revised downward to 659,000.
(Excerpt) Read more at news.yahoo.com ...
Anyone remember the excess office space available back in the 80's?
I expect the unexpected..............
Yeah, it's back..............
this is good news, not bad news. Too much supply, too little demand. Putting resources into low demand areas is a waste. Resources need to be go into other projects where there are more demand, not artifically prompted up
Concur.
There has never been a better time to buy if you’re not trying to sell a house. Just forget about the purchase as an investment and just look at it as a place to live.
As a manufacturer that has serviced the home building industry for over twenty years, I can attest to this first hand. Our increased summer production makes up for the slow housing starts that generally occur from Thanksgiving to New Year. Here it is June and we’re practically twiddling our thumbs. My best customers simply can’t get contruction loans. They have numerous lots financed, they are going broke servicing these loans faithfully, yet the banks won’t grant a loan to build on the lots.
I’m not sure how long my business can hang on, yet I know the gentlemen I work with are depending on me to remain open. It’s been a very frustrating year.
That's because they approached it all wrong. Every bank has an inventory of foreclosed homes or about to become foreclosed. They should have offered people the opportunity to move into one of the homes in their inventory that would be more affordable. i.e. if you were in a $500,000 home in CA, move into one that is $350,000, knock a couple grand off your payment and still have a nice home that you can actually afford. By moving everyone down a notch into homes they can actually make payments on, they end up with fewer homes in foreclosure, keep a cash flow going, and end a lot of neighborhood blight.
I spent some time with a mortgage broker yesterday. The new rules and regs for mtg brokers are red tape laden gov’t bueracracy at it’s worst. Of course the big four are now immune from these same regs. Wells-Fargo, BOA,Chase and i forget the other one. Many Mtg brokers are getting out of the business completely. The guy i was talking to is hanging on by a thread hoping for regime change in DC. Thats at least half the reason for stagnant home/building sales. We publish a real estate magazine and are dangling by the same thread. Still looking for a second job.
I wish you the best.
I’m looking for another industry altogether. With the looming disaster in the gulf, I’m seriously considering shrimp farming.
Whoa, Nellie !!!
Who lives in the $500K home when Person A moves into the $350k home?
The real solution always was the free market: Let the foreclosures happen, let prices collapse, create a new bottom, and then those who want to buy or sell a house can do so — at the real price.
If you can come up with ideas like the above - you'll have no problem figuring out how to live on social security...
I do think that is the solution to the foreclosure problem though.
Sounds good to me.
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