Done Cheering for Home Sales? Here's What's Really Going On
The housing market is improving, but there are still some troubling signs out there. Here's what's happening in local markets around the country.
NAR
Three Key Rules for Today's Housing Market
Some recent reports on the real estate market show home prices starting to stabilize in many areas. Other data suggests the housing market has further to fall. But whichever direction the numbers are heading, there are few tenets that smart buyers and sellers should always follow.
November Home Sales Take Small Step Forward
Housing remains in a slow, but uncertain recovery, as existing-home sales increased a less-than-expected 5.6% last month, to a 4.68-million-unit annual rate. At least, home sales rose in every U.S. region, and inventories fell.
Housing 2011: Unsettled, Underwater, Unsold
Sales agreements for previously occupied homes rose 10.4 % in October. But that one spark of hope comes against a backdrop of declining prices, bulging inventories and ongoing legal issues around foreclosures. Don't count on a real estate recovery next year.
Pending Home Sales Rebound Strongly
Aided by an improving job market and comparatively low mortgage rates, U.S. pending home sales surged a record 10.4% in October. Still, the latest new- and existing-home sales reports suggest a sluggish housing recovery at least into early 2011.
Existing-Home Sales Slid 2.2% in October
Sales of existing homes were hit with their first monthly decline since July as October sales fell 2.2% to a seasonally adjusted 4.43 million-unit annual rate. However, the drop isn't too surprising, given the usual seasonal cooling of home sales in the fall.
Pending Home Sales Drop Points to Uneven Recovery
Pending home sales in the U.S. unexpectedly fell 1.8% in September, the National Association of Realtors reported Friday. It was the statistic's first decline in three months, and one that suggests that the housing sector's recovery is likely to remain uneven through at least early 2011.
Pending Sales for U.S. Homes Fell 2.6% in June
The U.S. housing market suffered another modest setback in June as pending sales of homes fell 2.6%, but less than the 3.7% consensus estimate. Still, pending sales are now 18.6% lower than the June 2009 figure.
Home Buyer Credit Needed? Sales Fall Less Than Feared
After the federal home buyers tax credit ended at the end of April, analysts expected that sales would drop 7% in June. The reality was not quite that bad, with a 5.1% decline. Should Congress renew the credit?
Existing Home Sales Plunged 16.7% in December
The nearly year-long, positive trend in the U.S. housing sector ended 2009 on a sour note. Inventories also went in the wrong direction, as existing homes rose to a 7.2-month supply at the current sales pace, up from 6.5 months in November.