Hip, Hip, Hooray For Real Estate

September 26, 2012
Have you noticed? This past week the media reports that home sales are rebounding and that home prices are at the 2003 levels. Even Case-Shiller had a positive report although with reservations.
When all the headlines about housing were doom and gloom, prospective buyers sat on the sidelines even though interest rates on thirty year mortgages were at all time lows. Potential sellers owed more than their homes were worth and they either stayed put, did a short sale or let the property go back to the lender. The housing market basically stagnated as folks waited for better times.
So......if the better times are starting, will the housing market keep trending upward - in volume of units sold and in prices?
The answer, as almost always, is "It depends." Folks who were the early losers in 2008-2009 are now becoming eligible to borrow again. Will they take advantage of the still low prices of homes and the continuing low interest rates? Will prices catch up to amount of debt owed  so the owners can sell with out a short sale or without putting money in to close a sale? Will home builders reactivate their permits and start new construction that would entice folks to make a move?
The "Hip, Hip, Hooray" is that real estate and , perhaps the economy as a whole is feeling that the worst is over.