Things have not improved. Our buddies are Meryll, once snotty and too important to hang out with us, are now asking for employment applications. That is on top of the phone calls we keep getting from ex-Lehman guys. 

Anyways, this is a great summary of the current housing situation. Enjoy!

Home values plunge in Southern California
Median home price fell 34% in August from last year, sales up 10% during period but many driven by foreclosures.

“Foreclosure activity remains high, credit is still tight, affordability remains strained on the coast and the job market is soft,” Walsh said. “Some expect prices to bottom out soon … That may happen, but history suggests that few of us will time the bottom precisely.”

Foreclosures accounted for almost 46% of all resold properties last month, up from 10% in August 2007 and almost 44% in July. 

Holy cow. Take out the REO sales and normal transactions are at record lows.

First of all, I want to apologize to everyone for not blogging the last couple of days. A crisis had erupted at work and we’re all scrambling to keep the company from collapsing.

Some of you know that I work for a real estate development firm. Unlike public giants such as KB Homes or Lennar, my company does not have the ability to bleed money for several months in a row. We own hundreds of acres of land throughout California that are basically worth nothing now. Zero. Zilch. Nada.

I have long predicted that many local developers will be forced to close shop due to this housing crisis and, hey, it looks like I got that forecast right (at least for my company).

Anyways, until things settle down here, I will not have the time to blog on a daily basis. 

-TheArcadian

We are currently looking for 1-2 more authors that would like to write for AHB. It can be once a week, once a month or even daily (if that interests you). Please email me if you’re interested: thearcadian@arcadiahousingblog.com.