The National Association of Realtors issued another upbeat forecast this morning, prompting Barry Ritholtz to assemble, with help from InvesTech, a nice list of similar (and wrong) pronouncements going back to 2005. Which led me to daydream:
WASHINGTON, January 08, 2009 – Over the next few months, existing-home sales are expected to decline as indicated by pending sales activity, then plummet later in the year and continue to tank in 2010, according to the latest forecast by the National Association of Realtors®.
Lawrence Yun, NAR chief economist, said that nobody really wants to buy houses anymore. “On the one hand, we have a declining demand because unemployment has been rising,” he said. “On the other, consumers continue to wait for any sign of market stabilization. There are fewer people with financial capacity now than in 2005, plus those who do have the wherewithal are trying to market-time their purchase. As a result, we’re toast. And so I’ve accepted a job as Bob Shiller’s research assistant.”
When you read that, buy, buy, buy!