Housing Market Down-Worst drop since 1980

[roc612]

The final numbers are in for 2007 -- and they show the U.S. housing market suffered its worst year in a generation.

Housing starts and building permits dropped in December more than expected, creating a 25 percent decline for the year, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. It was the second-biggest annual decline on record, and the largest since the recession year of 1980.

Perhaps more troubling than the 2007 numbers is the indication of what construction might be like this year. According to the government data released Thursday, the full-year total for building permits posted the biggest drop in 33 years.

 

[DOGS THAT BARK]

Hmm A prudent person would expect when you hit new " all time" highs each month--

"New Home Sales Hit Record High in July
Wednesday, August 24, 2005

New-home sales in July soared to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.41 million units. That represented a 6.5 percent increase from June's pace of 1.32 million units, which had been the previous record."

--that fall would be almost as bad.--every investor pub has been chalked full of those who predicted the inevitable--including Greenspan.

Part of the prob aside from the subprimers who should have neverbeen given loans to begin with --is the "over exuberant" who did the home equity loans to speculate on making fast buck in housing boom.

Same can be said for stock market--if you didn't set stops to protect your gains you got no one to blame but yourself and greed.

As with most economic down turns--the living beyond their means debtors will suffer and the savers will sit back for bargins.

---Maybe the Dems can help you out--and triple tax son aving accounts to pay mortgage of the spend thrifts--on 2nd thought don't give them the idea

 

[djv]

Dog's this is 07 not 05. And whos been running this government last 7 years. Who looked other way as these loans were handed out from 03 to 07.

 

[DOGS THAT BARK]

probably the same people that looked the other way when PE on tech stocks ave 60/1 and market crashed. Wasn't Clinton -was the people buying the stocks.

You can't blame gov for peoples decisions.

 

[WhatsHisNuts]

You can't blame gov for peoples decisions.

Wayne: A lot of people made a lot of bad decisions and a lot of companies took advantage of a lot of people. You can believe what you want, but I believe that the government should have stepped in once the foreclosures started piling up. The foreclosures are taking thousands of prospective buyers OUT of the market (thanks to bad credit), which will negatively affect the economy for YEARS. Since people that have been foreclosed upon can't secure new loans, the entire market suffers.

 

[djv]

Stocks vs Houses. I guess you could try to draw a line. But stocks someone might start out with 100 shares maybe 2000//3000 bucks.
Back to House cost might start at 150000. And Banks pushing deals by a government not watching that now cost us all. Who's in charge of the Fed. Where were the regulators. No one in this government wants to take there share of credit for failures of any kind.