Question-and-Answer Session
Operator
(Operator Instructions) Your first question comes from Budd Bugatch with Raymond James.
Budd Bugatch - Raymond James
Good morning, Robert. Good morning, Larry. Can you give us maybe a little bit more color on the impact of special order sales and installed sales on the overall comp number and when do you think that might turn around? What are you looking for on that on forward into 2010?
Larry D. Stone
I’ll start off and then let Robert and Bob join in. Certainly installed, as Robert mentioned in his comments in a few categories we’ve noticed our detail fees have increased and installed sales for the -- starting off in the third quarter have improved in a couple of categories but that’s still the big bogey that we think consumers are just not willing to go out and spend on categories like kitchen cabinets and counter tops and even on our installed carpet program.
Our stock program that I mentioned in my comments has been extremely strong with double-digit positive comps in the second quarter. So once again we think once the housing kind of bottoms out and people get more confidence that the economy is starting to turn, I think there’s a big backlog on these projects but right now we are just seeing people spend on the smaller projects but certainly we’ve got the processes in place. We continue to have our sales specialists focused on the projects that do come on board and I just think it’s going to take a while before that business comes back, probably some time in 2010 would be a good estimate in my opinion.
Robert A. Niblock
The impact of installed and special order has negatively impacted our comps about 200 basis points in the quarter.
Budd Bugatch - Raymond James
Okay, and what’s the indicator you are looking forward now that you think will indicate that this has turned? Is it housing values? I mean, we are seeing a better velocity at least relatively in some of the housing indicators, so is it value or is it -- or is it just all of the above?
Larry D. Stone
Well, Budd, I mean obviously there’s a lot of inputs into the consumer’s decision-making process but I think a key item is seeing a bottoming in housing prices. If you think about for the number of homeowners that are out there, for them to move on those discretionary side larger projects, I think they want to know how bad are things going to get, how low is the value of my home going to go before they get off the fence and start spending on those major projects.
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