The bad news in the housing sector was coupled with a discouraging report on consumer confidence from the Conference Board, whose index dropped to 99.8 in September from 105.6 in August, much more than forecast. The index is now at its lowest level in nearly two years. A weak job market and stagnant salary growth has caused anxiety among consumers, analysts said, suggesting potential declines in consumer spending and job creation over the coming months.
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“It’s just a very negative environment here for residential real estate, which obviously feeds back into consumer attitudes and consumer spending,” said Joshua Shapiro, the chief United States economist for MFR, a New York research firm.
Lennar reported a 44 percent drop in revenue last quarter and has reduced its work force by 35 percent, another victim of the high inventory levels and credit market turmoil that have buffeted home builders this year. The company’s chief executive, Stuart A. Miller, said in a statement today that Lennar had seen “continued deterioration of our net margin and accordingly, higher impairments to our inventory.” Mr. Miller said further staff reductions were in store for the fourth quarter.
