"Worse than the Great Depression!"

That seems to be the rallying cry of every media outlet over the past few days. While it makes for sensationalistic headlines, it is not true. At least, we do not have data that proves it is or isn't true.
Let's start with a few facts about Housing data:
There is little reliable data about national home prices in the 1930s. The NAR data only goes back to 1969, and the US Government data from that era covers new home construction, not existing home sales.
The closest thing we have to national prices is the S&P/Case Shiller Index. The Index, which uses repeat home sales pricing, originated in the 1980s. Any chart showing home prices in the 1920s or 30s does not use actual sales data, but are hypothesized, historical data for the indices are available back to January 1987.
Know that sales volume of New Homes has fallen 82% versus 80% covering the 1929-33 era. By that one measure, you can ostensibly draw a conclusion that this single metric, covering less than 15% of all home sales, is worse today.
How does the Great Recession compare to the Great Depression? Some facts we do know:
1. Home ownership in 1930 was 47.8% versus 66.2% in 2000, and near 70% in 2006. (Census Bureau)
2. Unemployment was 25% at its Depression peak; the 2007-09 Recession never saw unemployment get over 12%. (BLS)
3. GDP lost 30% in the Great Depression; During the Great Recession, we lost 6% of GDP. (BEA)
4. Following the 1929 crash, broad stock market losses were more than 75% (Peak to trough Dow losses were 89%). 2007-09 stock losses were 50-57%.
5. Industrial production, which plummeted 75% around the 1929 Crash, has actually thrived during the Great Recession. Fed action and a weak dollar has helped US Manufacturers.
Both the Housing markets and available financing were widely different, then versus now. In addition to the lower Home ownership levels, 66.2% vs 47.8%, it was more concentrated among the wealthy as opposed to broad-based ownership now. Many more people lived on family farms early in the 20th century than today. And, more homes were owned outright, no mortgage in the 1930s versus today. I recall it was over 70% in the 1920s with no mortgage versus about 40% today. But the biggest and most important difference was financing. Mortgages were 3 to 5 year, interest only, with a balloon payment of the amount borrowed at the end. After that 3 year period, you either resigned with the bank, or sold the land and paid off the note. There was no such thing as a 30 year fixed rate mortgage in the 1920s or '30s. That would have had a huge impact on prices. Banks were failing by the 1000s; even someone with the means to roll their mortgage over might have found the bank did not have the ability to do so. With few buyers and almost no credit, the odds favor that RE prices would fall quite substantially. How much? One study of Manhattan, that looked at market-based transactions home prices between 1920 and 1939 found that Home prices plummeted 67% during the great depression.
Yes, home prices are bad. They are nearing the 35% drop we forecast back in 2005. But worse than the Great Depression? I don't think so.
Never let the facts get in the way of a good narrative!