"U.S. existing home sales notched their third monthly rise in June and prices hit the highest level since October, fueling hopes that the housing sector is finally on the mend and will help propel a broader economic recovery.
Other data on Thursday showed a jump in new claims for jobless aid last week, but claims by those already receiving benefits declined. The Labor Department said the numbers were distorted by a seasonally unusual pattern of layoffs in the auto sector that should fade in the next week or so.
Some analysts, however, read the jobs report as evidence that employment conditions are stabilizing and said this chimed with other signs that the economy has stopped shrinking.
U.S. stocks surged more than 2 percent on the home sales data. The Dow Jones industrial average closed above the 9,000 mark for the first time since January as investors took heart that a turn in the housing market -- seen as a linchpin of the economy -- would end a severe U.S. recession and help deliver growth over the rest of the year. The Nasdaq registered its 12th straight day of gains, its longest winning streak since 1992.
The National Association of Realtors (NAR) said sales of existing homes in June rose 3.6 percent to an annual rate of 4.89 million units, compared with a downwardly revised 4.72 million pace in May.
The June reading was the fastest sales pace since October, and topped forecasts for a 4.84 million unit annual pace."
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
3 comments:
I think it is too early to predict that these signs indicate a revival of the housing market.The uptick is because of the fact that Americans buy houses mostly in Summer. So, America has always seen uptick in these months.
I would say that we should wait and watch after 2-3 months.
I think housing market has still to fall because America is loosing on Jobs and interest rates have gone higher.
I think the market has yet bottomed out
"The truth is that we are still in the middle of a historic crash. However, as with such market dislocations, there are very attractive opportunities to invest and make profits if one has capital, patience, expertise, and a good plan in place.
Using data, I feel the people that are calling for a bottom are the soon-to-be victims of a massive head fake; why the nightmare has a long way to go; and how you might be able to profit from it.
Why Everyone Is Wrong – This Isn’t a Bottom
There are four items in place that are tricking people into calling a bottom, when in fact three of these items are temporary. The result is an artificial restriction of supply and artificial pumping of demand.
1) It’s the seasonally strongest buying season
2) There’s a foreclosure moratorium about to end
3) Federal tax credits offered for 1st time homebuyers
4) Historically low mortgage rates (this may or may not change soon)"
According to NAR "The inventory of existing homes for sale declined 0.7 percent to 3.82 million in June. The median national home price came in at $181,800, down 15.4 percent from the same period a year ago. But the median price was up 4.0 percent compared with May and was at the highest level since October.
The months supply of home for resale is coming down and home prices are falling at a slower pace overall, providing more evidence that the housing market is stabilizing," said Torsten Slok, a senior economist at Deutsche Bank in New York.
NAR's Yun said that the inventory of previously owned homes for sale represented 9.4 months' supply at the current pace of sales, down from 9.8 months' in May.
This was still above the historic average of six months' supply, which Yun said was consistent with a national price appreciation of around 4.0 percent.
I believe the housing market is reviving, however, it would take some time to confirm this assumption.
Post a Comment