Friday, August 21, 2009

Home Sales Rises

Good news for the Obama Administration....

The U.S. housing market is improving quicker than expected, with home resales in July posting the largest monthly increase in at least 10 years, as first-time buyers rushed to take advantage of a tax credit that expires this fall.

The National Association of Realtors said Friday that home sales rose 7.2 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.24 million in July, from a pace of 4.89 million in June. It was the fourth-straight monthly increase and the highest level of sales since August 2007.

Sales had been expected to rise to an annual pace of 5 million, according to economists surveyed by Thomson Reuters.

"The housing market, with today's strong rise in sales, has decisively turned for the better," said Lawrence Yun, the trade group's chief economist.

Sales of foreclosures and other distressed properties made up about a third of all transactions last month, down from nearly half earlier this year. In places like San Diego and Orlando, buyers are snapping up foreclosed properties at deep discounts, and real estate agents are pressing banks to release more foreclosures onto the market. read more here...

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