Rajiv
08-26-07, 06:45 PM
US mortgage crisis spreads to luxury home builders (http://business.guardian.co.uk/story/0,,2154318,00.html)
America's top builder of luxury homes has revealed that cancellations are at an all-time high as a crisis gripping the property market widens to the country's most affluent homebuyers.
Toll Holdings' news came as hundreds more jobs were cut by several mortgage lenders, including HSBC, which is closing a lending office with 600 staff in Indiana.
Although the property slump originated in the much less affluent sub-prime sector, Pennsylvania-based Toll Holdings made it clear that its speciality of gated estates, golf communities and waterside developments was suffering.
Toll's profits collapsed by 85% to $26.5m (£13.3m) in the three months to June and new home contracts fell 17% to 1,457
America's top builder of luxury homes has revealed that cancellations are at an all-time high as a crisis gripping the property market widens to the country's most affluent homebuyers.
Toll Holdings' news came as hundreds more jobs were cut by several mortgage lenders, including HSBC, which is closing a lending office with 600 staff in Indiana.
Although the property slump originated in the much less affluent sub-prime sector, Pennsylvania-based Toll Holdings made it clear that its speciality of gated estates, golf communities and waterside developments was suffering.
Toll's profits collapsed by 85% to $26.5m (£13.3m) in the three months to June and new home contracts fell 17% to 1,457