Sunday, August 22, 2010

New Housing Starts Rise In July.

A little good news for the slowly recovering housing markets? According to the U.S. Commerce Department, Housing starts increased 1.7 percent. That data shows that new housing activity appears to be stabilizing in the wake of the expiration of the home buyer tax credit. However, a healthy economy requires not only a good housing sector but stronger employment and income numbers than we currently have. Builders, rightly so, are very reluctant to build more homes in view of the current state of the economy and weak buyer demand.

But what does a recovering housing start market, in general, mean for the average homeowner? As our own local market begins to sprout up new homes, this in turn can increase jobs for the area. It also could indicate builders are confident enough in the local market to even start building. And if builders are confident, then you, as a homeowner could start to see your home value increase, as well as renewed buyers interest. Yet right now the housing market is essentially in a holding pattern. As surveys have indicated, builders are seeing greater hesitancy among potential home buyers who are uncertain about what's in store for the economy going forward. Still favorable home buying conditions including historically low mortgage rates and low house prices should help spur additional demand.

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