October 30, 2007

KB Home CEO Foresees Price Declines

This Reuters story on CNBC quotes Jeffrey Mezger, chief executive officer of home-building giant KB Home, regarding the state of the real-estate market.

[Mezger] said home prices in California could fall another 10 percent to 15 percent in the next 18 months. Mezger was speaking on a panel with Countrywide Financial CEO Angelo Mozilo and California State Treasurer Bill Lockyer. Lockyer said they all expected about 10 percent or more.

At the same event, Mezger made another prediction, according to the Los Angeles Business Journal:

“I think it’s going to take quite some time for the inventory to clear,” said Mezger, whose Los Angeles-based company is the fifth largest U.S. homebuilder by sales. He spoke today during a panel discussion at the Milken Institute State of the State Conference in Beverly Hills, California.

The latter story also reports that KB Home has lost half its value this year.