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Wednesday, November 19, 2008
U.S.: Housing starts lowest since 1950s

"Construction starts on housing fell 4.5 percent in October, less than economists forecast, to an annual rate of 791,000 that was the lowest since records began in 1959, the Commerce Department said in Washington.  Building permits, a sign of future residential projects, dropped 12 percent to a 708,000 pace, the lowest since at least 1960," reports Bloomberg News here. Government housing data release here.

"Builders mired in a three-year housing slump are finding it hard to attract buyers as property values drop and banks tighten lending standards. Declines in construction spending remain a drag on economic growth, increasing chances of a prolonged recession."

Posted by Joseph N. DiStefano @ 10:03 AM  Permalink | 3 comments
Comments   
Posted 11:47 AM, 11/19/2008
Ramses I
I do not see any cheap housing deals yet. The home I live in was about $5,000 in 1967 and is now about $400,000 (with no improvements). That is ridiculous. Salaries have not gone up proportionately. No wonder no one can afford the "American Dream" anymore and others are going into foreclosure. The only way to get the "American Dream" was to lie and get a mortgage that you could not afford. Drop housing prices 50-75% and allow everyone to get a piece of the pie – and keep it.
Posted 01:43 PM, 11/19/2008
distefj
Ramses, I think you see this pretty clearly. Analyst Meredith Whitney at Oppenheimer Securities said earlier this fall that home prices are down 20-30 pct nationwide, to what would have been historical levels without the recent housing boom; she predicted they will fall just as much more before the market starts to recover. Too bad a lot of construction workers, people who have to move, and others will suffer for a situation they didn't create.
Posted 04:44 PM, 11/19/2008
nmphtmne
Ramses, lowering housing prices across the board by 50-75%, and allowing "everyone to get a piece of the pie" may sound noble, but what about home owners who would like to put up their valuable home for sale? It penalizes them for being homeowners for the sake of being homeowners. Socialism is a terrible, terrible idealogy, and you are pushing for it at its core.
3 comments
About Joseph N. DiStefano
Joseph N. DiStefano writes this blog to feed his PhillyDeals column, which is printed in the business pages of The Philadelphia Inquirer every Sunday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday. Joe has worked at the Inquirer, mostly, since 1988. He has also written for Bloomberg and Gannett, authored the book Comcasted, majored in economics at Penn, and fathered six children. Reach Joe at 215-854-5194 and JoeD@phillynews.com

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