Robert Shiller
"There's a big change in psychology and that's what they're reacting to," said Robert Shiller, an economics professor at Yale University, who cut out the ad and showed it to his students. The campaign is a true "sign of the times," he said. Total existing-home sales, including single-family, townhouses, condominiums and co-ops, dipped 1.9 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 6.2 million units in September from a level of 6.3 million in August. They were 14 percent below the 7.2 million-unit pace in September 2005, the Realtors group said on Oct. 25. Last month, the Realtors said the median price for a new U.S. home probably will dip 0.2 percent to $240,500 in 2006, the first decline in 15 years. In October, the Mortgage Bankers Association predicted U.S. new home sales will plunge 18 percent this year and mortgage giant Freddie Mac said declining sales will shave a full percentage point off economic growth in the second half of 2006. "The