Are we at rock bottom are or we gonna go down more ? I was really worried it was gonna get worse but seems as though it may be looking up around here. Is this just in my region or is it everywhere ? Naturally with as many pumps that have been repod or sent back seems like there should be more work for the ones that are left . Is this the time for the industry to make its move to higher prices ? I am asking not suggesting or demanding simply asking ?

Where are you located?Is the work commercial or residential and is it union?Are you the one looking for operators.......

Bisley send me a email toddt@tmisla.com we are non-union and most of it is industrial

well oregon made the number five posision on the repo homes. the RV makers in town are trashed. i spend equall time chasing customers to paid. one guy with the new truck and pump that has $2500- a month in expences claims to be doing two pumps a week. the guy i work with is considering refinacing his home to pay on the three vehicles that he is paying on. even if the economy stabilizes there will still be a bottom. i would love to get a screaming deal on a truck mount unit that i see but i cannot pay for it. iam told to sell one of my trailers but who's buying at what price so i explain that when the market turns, lets say in two years what is that same unit going to cost and why would you want to spend years paying for it when i have allready endured that heart ache allready. so the less work i do means that i need more bucks to cover the costs, otherwise let the other guy do it and get stiffed. the resesion of the eighties when on for years and we are in a much worse mess now. 

My feeling is that we are still on the down side.

Question: What is a Recession?

Answer: A recession is when GDP growth slows, businesses stop expanding, employment falls, unemployment rises, and housing prices decline. For those reasons, many experts say the U.S. is actually in a recession now:

Many experts state that it is only an economic recession when GDP growth is negative for two consecutive quarters or more. However, for all practical purposes a recession starts when there are several quarters of slowing but still positive growth. Often a quarter of negative growth will occur, following by positive growth for several quarters, and then another quarter of negative growth.

A good example was the stock market crash and subsequent economic downturn in 2000. This was not a recession in technical terms because GDP growth was negative in Q3 2000, Q1 2001, and Q3 2001, none of which were consecutive. However, anyone who lived through it knows that it felt like a recession during all that time. And in fact, GDP growth did not reach over 3% until Q3 2003.

About the only good thing about a recession is that it will cure inflation. The balancing act the Federal Reserve must pursue is to slow economic growth enough to prevent inflation without triggering a recession. Currently, it must do this without the help of fiscal policy, which is generally trying to stimulate the economy as much as possible through lowering taxes, spending on social programs and ignoring current account deficits.

Question: What is a Depression?

Answer: A depression is a severe economic downturn that lasts several years. Fortunately, the U.S. economy has not experienced a depression since The Great Depression of 1929, which lasted ten years. The GDP growth rates were of a magnitude not seen since:

1.    1930 -8.6%

2.    1931 -6.4%

3.    1932 -13%

4.    1933-1.3%

During the Depression, unemployment was 25% and wages (for those who still had jobs) fell 42%. Total U.S. economic output fell from $103 to $55 billion and world trade plummeted 65% as measured in dollars.

The Depression was aggravated by poor monetary policy. Instead of pumping money into the economy, and increasing the money supply, the Fed allowed the money supply to fall 30%. The "New Deal" created many government programs to end the Depression, but government programs alone could not end it. Unemployment remained in the double-digits until 1941, when the U.S. entry into World War II created defense-related jobs.

A Depression on the scale of that in 1929 could not happen exactly the way it did before. Many laws and government agencies were put in place because of The Great Depression with the express purpose of preventing that type of cataclysmic economic pain. Central banks around the world, including the U.S. Federal Reserve, are so much more aware of the importance of monetary policy in regulating the economy.

However, there is only so much monetary policy can do without fiscal stimulus. The incredible size of the national debt limits government spending that could be used to stimulate the economy. Both monetary and fiscal policy are needed to prevent a global depression.

a few coments are GDP iam a consumer i invest a dollar to make a dime, the penny profit is a joke. stock, years ago grandad put down big bucks on a company that went banko within thirty days that was a volation and should have given the money back but did not. he could borrow against the money and did so making the payments. he then claimed on his taxes that the investment was a loss but IRS said that he could not. employment, i have never seen a dime of unemployment benifits so i have never been a satistic and the ones that use up the time will also fall off the rolls so i contend that realistically the numbers are slanted besause they are much higher than they will claim.    

eugene 

Government figures on the number of unemployed are a joke. It doesn’t matter who is ‘in power’ it is always the same. Not only are the unemployment figures deflated by 50% but the underemployment [people that have been laid off from their regular jobs and have taken desperation work for pennies] rate is never even calculated. The underemployed are just as likely to default on financial obligations like mortgages and car and insurance payments as the unemployed. As hard as they try it is improbable that they will be able to meet the $2,500 mortgage payment working for burger king after their paper route. These people were not sub-prime borrowers; they were real people with real jobs working to support their families. Their repossessed houses will continue to create negative pressure on the housing market. And with the reluctance of the banking industry to refinance or work with current mortgage holders the problem is getting worse, not better.

I wish that all the money that We the People have been dumping into that sector would start coming back in the form of loans to small business and responsible home owners.

I know, wish in one hand and s**** in the other………….

Eugene,

   That unit you are looking at, is it new or used?

personally, I think the used equipment will not see a bottom for a while.

 #1 the banks wont borrow for older stuff.

#2 the comanies selling new stuff are going to find new and 'enginuative' financing.

Sucks to sell something now!!

Every time I reply to one of these posts you know what happens, but here goes.  The first round of the sub-prime mortgage is about over with repos  these were people that the Democrat party forced the banks to make these loans are already out of thier homes,  the next round will be everyday people who cant afford thier bills, because they lost thier jobs.  It will take several years to get things back to any kind of normal.  If in fact it ever will,  if we decide to elect people that think spending a trillion dollars to fix things are going to solve our problems we will NEVER get out of this mess.  This kind of Government has NEVER  worked in anybodys country and it certainly will Never work here

CRAZYCRETER check this out 2005 tk-70 pto 270 hours with pipe rack on a 2005 gmc cabover 7500 6 cyl. 6 sp. with 18,000 miles. $80,000- or best offer well you know the pump costs that kind of money even at dealer cost so you are getting the $40,000- truck for free. so i call thinking that $70,000- would be fair and get told by the dealer that it has been for sale a year and the bank will only loan $57,000- do you know most banks will loan on equipment up to $50,000- with nothing more than good credit. and the rest of the deal is negociated.

bigstick 

You would have a much better chance of not being deleted (I have found) if you leave out key "confrontational" words, like the name of the political party that you feel is the cause of our problem. I don't agree with your reasoning at all, but we do come to the same conclusion.

Unregulated free markets are un-sustainable.

OH  that wasn't your conclusion? ;~)

Eugene, Theres some great deals out there!!!

Makes everybody think about expansion, but are we crazy?????

TRUE STORY:

  I was raised in farm country, and we had a small farm. My dad talked about a CRAZY old guy that during the 30's bought all of the farmland that he possibly could

   Everybody thought he was totally nuts to buy worthless land that everyone was giving away practically free!

His grandchildren farm that land to this day, and its HUGE. hundreds of sections (section = mile x mile for you city folk)

So today there's lots of cheap equipment, lots of high quality manpower out of work, cheap interest rates......call me crazy, but somebody will have the guts to do it

yes there are some not so successfull stories out there, and i'm not trying to talk anyone into anything,but...

i am stating facts, iterest is cheap, good equipment is reasonable, and time heals all wounds (economies too)

Trailers have done very well in keeping their value

good subject bob i would sure like to see values of pumps established from list price, going rate in the market and salvage. do banks care and we know that asking prices for used is absolutly not applical. what i like about tag units is that you can put them in the garage and close the door.

pudg,actually a good topic.As for our industry I see it sliding more and more.If I was to guess there are still allot of companies hanging on by a thread,wishing and hoping.If one believes there is or will be work in there areas adding a single piece of equipment might just work.

There are many great deals out there on used but not abused machines available.I can't help but think of all those older 28m - 32m pumps out there that are paid for making money daily.Only speculation,it may be worth seeing if a small rate increase would fly.

I heard a story the other day about a company with say 12 pumps just sitting.I can't be broke,I still have checks left.

I really dont know the answer any more than anyone else.  Iwish things would turn around for everyone,  I dont want this administration to fail like Rush Limbaugh does.  I just dont think throwing money at the problem will solve anything.  It never has in the history of this great country  and all I want is for everybody to get up, go to work and stop living off the government.  Until we do something about the illegal criminals in America I dont see anything getting better,  I'm sure in your area alot of guys you know would love to have a job finishing concrete when they dont have a pump job.  But every jobsite we go on all the finishers are illegal criminals.  Why are we as taxpaying Americans allowing this to happen.  It really saddens me to see what has happened, but what is the solution?

Also I dont want to argue with anyone I think you and I are on the same page for the most part, however we have different ideas as to the cause and the solution.  I would do just about anything to insure all my fellow pump operators have jobs and are able to feed thier families,  I am very fortunate that my home, cars and kids college education are paid for,  but I really feel sorry for the guys that want to work doing just about anything to feed thier families but  are unable to get even a manual labor job just to make ends meet.  Hopefull it will get better for everyone soon.

Bigstick....Rush Limbaugh does not want him to fail, he said that he just disagrees with this spending spree that Obama is on. He wants his policy to fail. And fail it will. The president, and the dems will be out of office in 4yrs and 2yrs. The american people are having buyers remorse with these idiots.

If you could, give this administration a chance.  It's barely been a month.  It's going to take some time but I'm sure they'll master greed and corruption like the previous administration...How's that?  Aren't opinions swell?

Gotta love politics....eh Todd?  ...and don't get me going on religion.  My favorite bumper sticker:  "Lord, please save me from your followers."   and sex?  Should I open that can-o-worms?

http://www.liberalforum.org/

http://www.conservativesforum.com/

http://perspectives.com/forums/forum6/

http://www.alan.com/

http://www.rushlimbaugh.com/home/today.guest.html

http://www.constructionworkersthatthinktheyhaveahandleonworldpolitics.com

Here's some cool places y'all can go to talk about this bullshit.  Why y'all gotta bring it here?

Sure the economy and work goes hand in hand.  We get it.  Debate it somewhere else.  On this forum, let's stick with what we know...concrete pumps.  The second y'all start belting out your political opinions - it just makes you look dumber and more uninformed than you may be...and then guys get all butt-hurt and harbor ill feelings toward each other.  Let's be friends here.

Dear Dr. I am in full agreement with you but every time I post this argument It gets deleted.  I listen to talk  christian radio everyday.  This ass#@!#  is trying his best to destroy MY country, I've called every congressman in Washington to vote against this  socialist.  Just pray every night like I do that this will end soon with little harm.

Raymond,

Here is my favorite bumper sticker.

When derivatives are outlawed

                only

outlaws will have derivatives !

Bob-

Was that on a Range Rover?

no

my 1994 Dogdge PU