There are always questions about whether direct or channel sales drive prices. This eliminates the question.

We were obviously disappointed by sales for this holiday season, particularly because we had been outperforming the retail sector as a whole for the previous nine months,

Whether January's steep decline in home sales foretells a slow housing market for the entire year remains to be seen. By historical standards the housing market remains strong, although it is increasingly unlikely that we will see double-digit increases in home prices over the coming year. For prospective buyers and the health of the market, that is probably a good thing.

Although this represents a significant decline, the sales pace in January is still ahead of last year at this time, and 2005 was a record-breaking year for Alabama.

Our record third-quarter retail earnings were fueled by industry-leading comparable-store sales and illustrate our ability to execute in this market sector,

The good news is that sales for January seem to be right on track with our previous forecast of 4 percent -- not enough to make up for the holiday shortfall, but a good sign nonetheless,