Tuesday, September 23, 2008

Shiller's Housing Call

Robert Shiller's new book, The Subprime Solution, has this blurb by Lawrence Summers:

Robert Shiller is two for two in predicting and identifying bubbles that will burst.

I suppose he is referring to the 2005 revision to Irrational Exuberance, where he has a chapter on housing. A bunch of information, and concern, but no real call that housing was ready to decline. Lots of qualifiers.
From page 206:

The bubble in housing prices that began in the late 1990s shows signs of slowing down in some cities. But it is not at all clear when it will be over. Slowdowns can be reversed, and prices can take off again...
In cities where prices have gotten so high that many people cannot afford to live there, the price increases may start to slowdown, and then to fall. At the same time, it is likely the boom will continue for quite a while in other cities.

I boldly predict that in our current uncertainty, some firms will rally hard over the next year, and some may go bankrupt.

No comments: