Need a reason to celebrate over the holiday weekend? July new home sales are up 25.3% and existing-home sales are up 10.4% over July 2011, according to the Commerce Department and the NAR. We still have a long way to go, but it's certainly nice to see some improvement.

Builder Confidence is up

Permits Up Strongly as Housing’s Recovery Takes Hold

Starts were down in July due to sagging single-family activity.

By 

Claire Easley

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"The market for new construction is back on track."

 

That’s the analysis from Patrick Newport, U.S. economist at IHS Global Insight, in response to the latest report on new-housing starts and permits from the U.S. Department of Commerce, released today.

Permits were up 6.8% in July, hitting an annual rate of 812,000, the best reading the industry has seen since August 2008. Single-family permits were up 4.5% for an annual rate of 513,000, and multifamily permits sprang up 11.2% for an annual rate of 299,000.

Housing starts moved down 1.1% in July, hitting an annual rate of 746,000, due to a 6.5% decline in single-family activity. Multifamily starts were up 12.4% for the month. However, "since housing starts tend to follow housing permits with a small lag, July’s decline in starts is nothing to worry about," Newport said.

"The recovery is mainly taking place in the South and West, with the multifamily segment coming back faster than the single-family segment," he said, but added that the pickup has thus far been sluggish and is expected to remain so for about another year. "Eventually, provided the economic recovery remains on track, the demographics will start to kick in—household formation will accelerate … and many young adults now living with parents will start moving out." As for when the industry can expect starts to top the 1.5 million mark, Newport’s prediction is 2015.

See the Commerce Department’s full release on July’s housing starts and permits numbers.

Claire Easley is a senior editor at Builder.

 

8 Signs Housing Is on the Mend

DAILY REAL ESTATE NEWS | MONDAY, AUGUST 06, 2012

Some Americans are still jittery over the housing market, but here are eight positive signs that should quell some of their fears. 

1. Housing prices are on the rise across the country.
2. Foreclosures have slowed. Analysts suggest that as the supply of distressed homes slows, buyers will be forced into higher-price properties too.
3. Inventories of for-sale homes on the market are decreasing. In fact, inventories of for-sale homes have dropped 24 percent from a year ago.
4. Mortgage rates are at ultra record level lows, for those who can qualify
5. Housing starts rose 6.9 percent in June. Also, existing-home sales were up 4.5 percent higher in June compared to one year ago. 
6. Home building stocks are on the rise.
7. For investors who are buying homes, rents are soaring, allowing them to cash in on their investments. Rental prices are at a 10-year high as median units rent for $710 a month.
8. Home affordability is at record highs for the median income family, due to falling home values and super low mortgage rates. In fact, a recent study found that it is cheaper to buy a home than rent in basically ever major city in the U.S. For those who buy, you can save the cost of renting by owning the home for five years or less.

But while the signs point to a housing market on the mend, some Americans still remain hesitant. Many Americans are still underwater on their mortgage, owing more on their home than it is currently worth. Also, the economy continues to weigh on the recovery, particularly a dampening employment outlook, which analysts see as tied to housing. 

Still, The Wall Street Journal concludes in a recent article that if you take into account all the positive signs lately in the housing market, “housing presents an attractive long-term investment that should hold steady or even have upside surprise in the short term.”