According to a Trulia report released today, the number of homes for sale with discounted asking prices fell to less than 20% at the end of February. This compares favorably to the rate of more than 25% a year prior. This data suggests that the housing market may have finally hit its nadir and is ready to start moving in a more positive direction.
It is unclear whether demand for houses is rising to meet supply or sellers are acknowledging the true value of their homes and pricing them accordingly. Either way it is an indicator that housing prices are beginning to stabilize at their true levels. Among the cities that had the biggest drops in price reductions from February to January were bubble-ravaged cities such as Charlotte, Jacksonville, and Tucson.
Another favorable sign is that several beleaguered California cities (San Francisco, Sacramento, San Diego, and Oakland) are among those with the lowest rates of reduced price homes. Signs of improvement in the battered California economy would be a boon to the nation as whole. California has the 8th largest economy in the world, and the old adage says: as California goes, so goes the nation.
This news comes quickly after reports that the U.S. may add as many as 300,000 jobs in March, the most in four years. Jan Hatzius, chief economist at Goldman Sachs said he anticipates about 275,000 jobs to be added in March. Reports from the U.S. Labor Department indicated that the number of job openings in January rose by 7.6% compared with December. 2.7 million job openings were available, the highest number in over a year. While most economists believe job growth in 2010 will be gradual, this is surely a positive sign that the economy is moving in the right direction. Most economists believe that job growth is what will truly fuel recovery in the housing sector.
As the economy improves, housing prices will inevitably recover. Historically real estate has been one of the best long-term investments one can make in the United States. Have you been considering taking advantage of all-time low mortgage rates? Do you want to get in on the ground floor of the housing market? Contact one of our mortgage professionals today at 877-868-2503. Years from now you will thank yourself.
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Mortgage
March 10, 2010 @ 1:02 pm
Real estate is a good investment because it always goes up, and if you have a second property you can rent it out which makes for a even greater investment
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