We keep hearing how the housing market took the economy down, now we are finally seeing some positive numbers showing that the housing market is improving nationally- but especially in the Western States!!
Finally, Positive News For Arizona Home Sellers!
As you can see from this chart, existing home sales in December shot to the upside. In fact, compared to November, home sales were up 4% in the Midwest, 7.4% in the South and up to 13.6% in the West. Although the Northeast took a bit of a hit, overall home sales in the U.S. rose a full 6.5%!
Great news for sellers because rising home sales mean that buyers are coming back into the market! One of the biggest investments out there for most people is finally showing signs of health. This spurs the banking business, contractor activity and a boost in tons of home-related products and services... and the news gets even better.
The latest report from the National Association of Realtors also shows that the supply of existing homes is falling. With about 3.7 million units on hand, current existing home inventory amounts to 9.3 months of supply. That's the lowest supply level in a year and is significantly off last year's high of 11.2 months booked in April.
Why are we seeing such a big change? Tumbling home prices. In fact, during December the average home in the United States averaged $175,400, down 15% from the year-ago period's $207,000. And while that's painful for home sellers, it's also the sign of a sector beginning to shift in the right direction.
