New Homes Sales Slowest Ever
That loud creak you’re hearing isn’t necessarily limbs falling off ice-encased trees; it’s the sound of new homes sales skidding to a stop. According to MSNBC.com, the U.S. Department of Commerce has reported,
… New home sales fell 14.7 percent in December to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 331,000, from a downwardly revised November figure of 388,000.
The downward spiral is nearly out of control because builders can’t slow down enough to steady the prices - which also keep falling.
Builders have been forced to slash production during a prolonged and severe slump in housing that has seen sales and prices plummet. December’s sales activity was depressed by the worst financial crisis in seven decades, which has made it harder for potential buyers to get mortgage loans.
I heard vocalized on the news for the first time this morning that we are at or near Depression-era job loss. Job loss - of course - is the hinge of the door closing on retail sales which means that this winter may not be the only thing on ice… consumer confidence is a bit chilly as well.
Let’s hope the chances of obtaining home mortgages improve before the freeze settles into an Ice Age,
Builders have been forced to slash production during a prolonged and severe slump in housing that has seen sales and prices plummet. December’s sales activity was depressed by the worst financial crisis in seven decades, which has made it harder for potential buyers to get mortgage loans.
January 30th, 2009 at 7:45 pm
[…] numbers are in, and December new home sales fell 14.7 percent. Indeed, this is an indicator that times really are quite tough in the housing and mortgage market. […]