Comments on: Behind the bad news in housing sales is there even worse news?

By: robert1234

robert1234 — Fri, 25 Sep 2009 23:44:00 +0000

I was out walking today, I found an apple, and a pair of sox. I picked them both up. I will eat the apple, and I will wash the sox.
Think about it.. Just think about it.

By: Jim Jubak

Jim Jubak — Fri, 25 Sep 2009 15:59:56 +0000

Catch 22, thanks for your post. I think you’ve captured the current buyer’s quandry exactly.

By: Jim Jubak

Jim Jubak — Fri, 25 Sep 2009 15:58:48 +0000

dblwyo, it would help if we knew how big the shadow inventory was. But then it wouldn’t be a shadow would it.

By: amtrend10

amtrend10 — Fri, 25 Sep 2009 12:49:54 +0000

You are absoutly correct. If the banks lost their bad “assets” their balance sheets would put them in asset / debt imbalance. We are still waiting for that shoe to drop. I thought maybe the gvt would address this but I guess it doesn’t present a way for the boys to get their hand in the cookie jar.

By: dblwyo

dblwyo — Fri, 25 Sep 2009 11:09:23 +0000

Don’t forget seasonality. YoY August sales were up slightly over last year. But, looking at CalculatedRisk’s charts, the market is beginning a bottoming process. Nonetheless a) we have a huge shadow inventory to be worked off and b) the economic consequences and foreclosures will likely worsen for some time to come.