After proclaiming that we Californians have attained housing nirvana, Leslie Appleton-Young, chief economist of the California Association of Realtors, is now at a "loss for words" as to how best to describe the future of the housing market in California. Apparently the term "soft landing" is just too mild for her. As you will read in the quoted material, we will know how she is going to describe the future of the housing market when she 'gets her new term'. But until then, here's a suggestion for you Leslie: "hard landing". And if her about-face gets her in trouble? No worries as the CAR saw it all coming and have prepared their defenses.The next thing you know David Lereah is going to come out and explain why this bubble is not a bubble or a balloon or a ship or any of the other feel-good euphemisms he is known for. What's the world coming to?
There's a lot of insightful and entertaining commentary about all this over at the Ben Jones blog.
Some choice quotes:
Leslie Appleton-Young is at a loss for words.The media, you see, are masters of denial as this video makes plain.
The chief economist of the California Assn. of Realtors has stopped using the term "soft landing" to describe the state's real estate market, saying she no longer feels comfortable with that mild label.
"Maybe we need something new. That's all I'm prepared to say," Appleton-Young said.
The shift in language comes as debate over the real estate market is intensifying. The long-awaited drop-off is happening, but there's little agreement about how brutal the landing will be.
Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S. Bernanke said in congressional testimony Thursday that the national housing downturn so far appears orderly.
For real estate optimists, the phrase "soft landing" conveyed the soothing notion that the run-up in values over the last few years would be permanent. It wasn't a bubble, it was a new plateau.
"I'm sorry I ever made that comment [that the market was headed for a 'soft landing']," she said Thursday. "When I get my new term, I'll let you know."
1 comment:
When Bernanke was speaking this week, so many of the questions were housing related, the first time I heard politicians flat out admit how dependent our economy has been on real estate. I can't imagine this will be a pretty picture given suicide financing and the complete disconnect between incomes & home prices. And as appreciation flattens or goes negative, why on earth would anyone take on a huge mortgage?
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