Toll Brothers: More housing support needed – Daily Briefing
by Tom on November 20, 2008
in Market Musings
CEO Robert Toll said that as late as September, the company was on track to post a flat quarter in terms of contract signings. But that trend, which Toll had pointed to in its third-quarter earnings call as an early and modest sign of stability after a three year housing slump was “upended by the past month’s financial crisis,” the company said. As a result, Toll said it won’t offer any financial guidance for 2009.
Tom here – essentially, that means that Toll has no idea what 2009 is going to be like……
…..“However, we believe that, if home prices are not stabilized, these efforts will be for naught, more mortgages will go under, and the taxpayers’ money will have been wasted,” Toll added. “We urge Congress to stimulate demand by reducing mortgage rates and fees and by providing incentives such as a buyer tax credit for the purchase of all types of homes. We believe these initiatives would offer the greatest benefit for the taxpayer’s dollar.”
Toll Brothers: More housing support needed – Daily Briefing.
Artificial stimulation of the housing industry, the auto indusry or any other industry at levels that aren’t supportable by the normal population demographics is merely going to prolong the adjustments that need to be made. We’re adjusting to new fundamentals in terms of debt levels, house prices, income levels and any effort to artificially inflate will be expensive in the long run.
Tom
