The construction industry took a beating due to the financial crisis. Just how bad did home building decline? It depends where you look but overall, the numbers are very frightening.
In a report released recently, new order for homes built in the third quarter of 2008 was down 25% compared to last year. In numbers, that is 2,002 homes for this year compared to 2,660 homes in 2007.
Because of what is happening in the economy, there was increase in the number of cancellations from 24% last year to 27% this year. While real estate companies tried to curb the trend by offering it to other potential buyers, the market wasnt biting which is why there were a lot of homes that were never sold.
In terms of home building revenues, that roughly translates to $928 million. If you think that is still good, look back at the sales performance last year and you will see that it was lower by 27%. These figures go on and on and they are really depressing.
So are companies making money? No and the worse part is that construction companies have to layoff hundreds or even thousands of workers in order to stay afloat.
If you wanted to build a home, the only way...