I guess there is no good news for the US home builders as they are working to cut their losses at every level. I love the quote from the CEO of D.R. Horton (see below quote from the article)…it’s priceless….
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Most U.S. home builders have taken defensive positions looking to generate cash. They have also been selling unsold homes, land positions, paring debt, laying off employees and cutting prices to generate sales.
“Our goal is close as many homes as we can in this fiscal year,” said Don Tomnitz, chief executive of D.R. Horton Inc.(DHI.N: Quote, Profile, Research), the largest U.S. home builder. He tells his sales force that “If the buyer’s got a pulse, and they’re warm, take them out of the market place” by getting them to sign a contract. To match demand, Horton has slashed the number of homes it has under construction to 26,000 at the end of March from 40,000 at the end of June 2006. Horton had 266,000 lots owned or controlled at the end of March, down from 396,000 a year earlier. The Fort Worth, Texas-based company expects to cut more than $220 million in costs by the end of the fiscal year ending September 30.”
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