Nice of these guys to finally figure it out. Of course, they didn’t come to this realization until they had almost bled themselves dry of cash. Better to learn late than never:

From Market Watch, January 30, 2008:

Executives at Centex Corp. Wednesday said the builder is lowering home prices to reflect the new reality in the shaken U.S. mortgage market. The company wants to “attract the right kind of buyers, those who can afford the mortgage and the payment,” said Cathy Smith, chief financial officer, during a conference call. “Essential to selling homes is finding the right price where buyers can qualify for a mortgage. The average selling price will continue to decline … in the near term, reflecting our aggressive response to the tighter credit standards,” the CFO said. “We need to get back to pricing that is reflective of value,” said Centex Chief Executive Tim Eller during the call. “It’s also important to do that for financing reasons because right now what people can qualify for is generally a Fannie Mae, a Freddie Mac or increasingly only FHA, so it’s important to have a price that reflects the values that attract the customers that can qualify for those mortgages.”