In previous posts, I have mentioned (along with others in the industry, what is right is right) that the economy doesn't have any chance of recovery until home prices bottom. The home equity ATM is gone and the wealth effect has similarly dissolved. The later is important because it supported a low savings rate; why scrimp if my house is always moving higher? Not to mention multiple dwelling purchases and subsequent defaults by speculators, which have decimated states like Arizona, Florida and Nevada.
The data released today does not point to a bottom. On average, prices are down 19% in the last 12 months. The last time prices were this low was the Winter of 2003.
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