With the weather warming up and summer just around the corner, many members of the RE community have found themselves asking the question, “What’s in store for us throughout the rest of the year?” Well the wait is almost over – and the answer has become a little clearer – as new data indicates that the market is on its way up!
home sales up
According to the newest study performed by the U.S. Department of Commerce, newly built single-family home sales are on the rise, increasing by 6.4% from March – the first increase we’ve seen since January. This increase also boosted the seasonally adjusted annual rate to 433,000 – 8,000 higher than what was predicted by economists polled by Bloomberg News.

In a similar study, it was found that sales of previously owned homes rose nationwide in April, another promising sign that the market is picking up momentum amid the spring selling season. Home resales have jumped 1.3% from March, increasing to a now seasonally adjusted rate of 4.65 million nationwide, according to the National Association of Realtors.

“Some growth was inevitable after sub-par housing activity in the first quarter, but improved inventory is expanding choices, and sales should generally trend upward from this point,” Lawrence Yun, the trade group’s chief economist, said in a statement.

Condominium and co-op sales saw some of the largest gains, as sales for attached united climbed 7.3% from the month before, a sign that affordability remains a problem across the nation.

The latest studies aren’t all good news though. While new homes sales are up from earlier this year, they still sit 4.2% below April of the year before. Similarly, previously owned home sales are down 6.8% from April 2013.

Do you think this is the first step to more major improvements, or will this year continue to remain stagnant as the market recovers from last year’s jumps? What are your thoughts?