Signs of Life in the Economy As House Sales Pick Up
Monday, November 23, 2009 at 9:05AM
The bursting of housing bubble helped throw the global economy under a bus - can it also be the route to economic recovery?
New data published this morning could point to the beginning of a recovery. Bloomberg reports:
Sales of existing U.S. homes increased more than forecast in October to the highest level since February 2007, spurred in part by a tax credit that lured first-time buyers.Purchases rose 10.1 percent to a 6.1 million annual rate from a 5.54 million pace in September, the National Association of Realtors said today in Washington. The median sales price decreased 7.1 percent from October 2008, the smallest decline in more than a year.
Cheaper homes and stimulus such as the $8,000 incentive, extended and expanded by the Obama administration this month, have revived an ailing housing market that contributed to the worst economic slump since the Great Depression. Further improvement that would aid the economy’s recovery depends on an easing in unemployment and foreclosures.
“It’s an impressive increase and shows a lot of pent-up demand for housing,” said Dean Maki, chief U.S. economist at Barclays Capital Inc. in New York. “Buyers have enough confidence to take the plunge. The housing market recovery will be a durable one.”
And here's a discussion, via CNBC, of what these data actually mean for the economy:
barack obama,
economy,
great recession,
politics,
recovery,
tax breaks 
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