Image by Getty Images via @daylifeNEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- In the latest sign of renewed turbulence in the housing market, an industry group said Thursday that sales of existing homes fell 5.1% in June.
5.37 million units, down from 5.66 million in May. Sales year-over-year were up 9.8%.
Analysts had expected sales to fall to an annual rate of 5.09 million units, according to consensus estimates from Briefing.com.
"The housing industry is slogging through a swamp looking for solid ground," said Mitchell Hochberg, a principal at Madden Real Estate Ventures. "With mounting foreclosures, growing consumer pessimism and a rise in inventory, the only path to recovery is an increase in employment."
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------So...What does this all mean to you and me and the future market. Interest rates are historically low but yet home sales are down, why? It is all about the skepticism in the economy and lack of jobs. Everyone seems to be waiting to see what happens next with the economy before they make major changes in their lives. How as realtors, do we advise people when and if it is a good time to make that change of address, to move up, downsize or purchase that first home? No matter where you live, most people have been watching the housing market and know that it is down across the nation, some areas more than others. What about new home starts?
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Housing Market Stumbles 
Construction Slows, Inventories Build Amid Weak Job Growth, Tax-Credit End By NICK TIMIRAOS and ROBBIE WHELAN
The housing market, whose collapse pulled the economy into recession in late 2007, is stalling again. In major markets across the country, home sales are deteriorating, inventories of unsold homes are piling up and builders are scaling back construction plans. The expiration of a federal home-buyers tax credit at the end of April is weighing on the market.
On Tuesday, the U.S. Census Bureau said single-family housing starts in June fell by 0.7%, to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 454,000. The U.S. started 1.47 million homes in 2006, before the housing bubble popped.
Future construction looks even weaker. Permits for single-family starts fell 3% in June, following big declines in both May and April. "We're hovering at post-World War II lows," said Ivy Zelman, president of Zelman & Associates, a research firm. For complete story
No comments:
Post a Comment