A Central Florida Sell-Off

Sold equipment, 2007 vs. 2008

Craig Vorster works in road construction in Central Florida. When the company has more equipment than it needs, it sells the extra. In 2007, as you can see from the folder on the left, it sold not so much. But in 2008?

"The handwriting was really quite on the wall," Vorster says. The work was drying up, and the company started selling off equipment, a move reflected in the larger folder on the right. And the guy whose job it was to sell the old stuff? Vorster says he was laid off.

Now, with the federal stimulus money trickling in, Vorster says he's hearing about new work orders. But the construction companies are so desperate that they're offering amazingly low prices, he reports, with jobs the state transportation department lists at $10 million drawing multiple bids for half that. "It's really quite scary when you look at it," he says. He predicts a continued struggle for stretched builders and more headaches for the municipalities that hire them.