NAR Report 2012 Home Sales Looking Positive

Since starting in the real estate business in 1994, I cannot remember a time of being this busy this time of year.  Buyers are out looking AND they are out buying.  The reason?  A lot of buyers who have been sitting on the fence waiting are now getting off that fence and taking advantage of the incredibly low interest rates.  From first time buyers, to buyers who are downsizing or moving up, buyers are out buying!  And it's just not here in Jonesboro, AR either, take a look at the below article from the National Association of Realtors

NAR released its latest pending home sales index figure last week and for the second month in a row the index is up. But more than that, the index has broken 100. This is significant because the only time since the housing boom collapsed that the index has broken 100 is when the home owner tax credit was in effect. The fact that the index has returned to that level a year since the credit has been in effect means the housing market is strengthening completely on its own, without any stimulus.

NAR Chief Economist Lawrence Yun is upbeat about 2012 because in a number of areas indicators are pointing upward. Not only are home sales up but housing starts are up and home prices are stabilizing in many markets and heading up in some. In areas where they’re still down, the declines aren’t that great. More fundamentally, broader U.S. economic signs are looking positive, including the all-important jobs picture. About 100,000 job are being created a month, and that could rise to 150,000—still not a quick enough pace to get us back to where we were before the downturn but the headwinds are in the right direction.
Originally posted on NAR.org by Robert Freedman