Calculated Risk: Comments on November Housing Starts
A year ago, for November 2013, housing starts were reported at 1.091 million on a SAAR basis (seasonally adjusted annual rate), up 29.6% from November 2012. Starts in November 2013 have since been revised up to 1.105 million. That huge increase in starts was probably one reason that many analysts, myself included, were overly optimistic for housing starts in 2014.
Nobody expects the parabolic inquisition.
Note the exceptionally low level of single family starts and completions. The "wide bottom" was what I was forecasting several years ago, and now I expect several years of increasing single family starts and completions.
In order for that prediction to work out, we may need to see some building permit growth. So let's look for it!
The following chart shows the 12-month moving average of new private housing units authorized by building permits (in structures with 1 unit).
Click to enlarge.
Uh, oh. Let's zoom in for a closer look.
Click to enlarge.
I spy, with my little eye, a whole lotta nothing burger.
You expected a different video? What is this? Some sort of Parabolic Inquisition?
Source Data:
St. Louis Fed: New Private Housing Units Authorized by Building Permits - In Structures with 1 Unit
Not a parabola, a dead cat bounce.
ReplyDeleteCalculated Risk is such a smug prick.
ReplyDeleteBoy is he due for a comeuppance!!
Rob Dawg,
ReplyDeleteA parabola *and* a dead cat bounce!
Catabolic trend failure! ;)
Anonymous,
ReplyDeleteExcuse me... is someone out there not having a good time? ;)
Bill McBride is "mailing it in" and "toeing the line." He is not deserving of personal insults. And let's face it; his market suggestions have been massive wealth generators. So far. Sooooo farrrrr.
ReplyDeletehttps://user.xmission.com/~emailbox/physics.htm
ReplyDeleteRob Dawg,
ReplyDeleteIt is not possible to predict where a cat actually is, only the probability of where she "might" be.
The Sebastcat always knows the exact location of itself to within 0.02323 cm though, give or take 3-4 meters. ;)
(Inside joke.)
By inside you mean probably inside. Wouldn't be prudent to say with any certainty.
ReplyDeleteRob Dawg,
ReplyDeleteHahaha!
I definitely should have been more clear. It's a universal inside joke!
That's give or take 14.0 billion parsecs. I'm sticking to the observable universe.
That said, many may not be able to see the inside joke. And if that's the case, then can it truly be a universal inside joke?
Okay, here's the final draft.
A joke that's probably universal and inside, but not guaranteed to be funny, universal, or inside.