Numbers, Worst in History

chefdennis · Sep 25, 2010

for this period since records have been kept

It ain't pretty and it is only going to get worse as winter gets here.

You can see the charts and finish the article at the link below.

The Ugly Truth About Today’s New Home Sales Report

By John Galt
September 24, 2010
Shenandoah » The Ugly Truth About Today’s New Home Sales Report

How bad was it?

The worst June, July and August sales period since records have been kept in 1963:

A total of 82,000 new homes sold, not seasonally adjusted.

The worst August for home sales on record since 1963:

25,000 homes sold, not seasonally adjusted; next lowest was August 1981 at 34, 000.

The May through August 2010 time span was the worst four month period for home sales priced under $200,000 since records have been kept in 2002:

(On a non-seasonally adjusted basis)

May 2008-August 2008: 70,000 homes

May 2009-August 2009: 64,000 homes

May 2010-August 2010: 47,000 homes

Worst month since record keeping began in 2002 for home sales priced $300,000 or above:

August 2010, on a non-seasonally adjusted basis, had fewer than 5,000 homes in the $300,000 or higher price range (including over $750,000+).

The charts tell the rest of the story and any hint that there was “improvement” is a complete and total misnomer. This report plus the new home sales activity this past summer is indicative of a housing market experiencing further declines. Any numbers regarding inventory can be dismissed completely in my opinion as the shadow inventory of new and existing homes are deliberately kept vague in an insane attempt to support pricing levels and prevent an outright collapse of the residential real estate market. To add to the lunacy, the idea that any uptick in starts is a positive, especially by the large publicly traded mega-builders, simply pours more gasoline on to the gasoline which is already on fire and still burning itself out.