Market's Gone From Expensive to Cheap

This column was originally published on RealMoney on June 7 at 9:14 a.m. EDT. It's being republished as a bonus for TheStreet.com readers.

Is the market cheap or expensive? This question is at the crux of whether you can wait to buy or whether there is not much further to fall.

If you look at the price-to-earnings ratios for the market right now, you'll see they're nothing special: 20 for the Dow and 17 for the S&P 500. The Nazz is worse, at 32.

But if you look at the estimated P/Es, at the future, you get reasonable numbers like 15 for the Dow and S&P. The Nazz is still tougher, with a 26 P/E, but you have much higher growth over there. ...