a rash of apparently “good news” it looks as though the economic-monster has
hit. There is now speculation that the housing bubble has finally burst:
WASHINGTON – Sales of new homes plunged in November by the largest amount
in nearly 12 years, providing the most dramatic evidence yet that the red
hot housing market over the last five years is starting to cool down.The Commerce Department reported Friday that new single-family homes were
sold at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.245 million units last month,
a drop of 11.3 percent from October, when sales had surged to an all-time
high.Last month’s decline was even bigger than the 8.7 percent drop-off that
Wall Street analysts had been expecting. While sales of both new and
existing homes are still on track to set records for a fifth straight year
in 2005, analysts are forecasting sales will decline in 2006 as the housing
boom quiets down.Analysts are looking for home sales to dip by around 6 percent next year
under the impact of rising mortgage rates. Analysts believe that house
prices, which had been soaring at double digit rates, will moderate as well.
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here.
So this could end up being a sign that the economy is getting ready to head
back down that dark track. Not good news for Bush or Americans. What will 2006
bring?