My Real Estate Blog

When home prices, mortgage applications to buy homes and consumer confidence are ALL pointing upward, even the perpetual doomsayers on Wall Street have to admit: Housing in the U.S. looks like it's on a very positive track.  Prices are up in 12 of the 20 major markets.

Consumer confidence also improved significantly in the last month, as measured by the Conference Board. That's hugely important for overall economic growth and for home sales in the months ahead.

The Commerce Department released parallel findings last week - that consumers are finally beginning to loosen up on spending, and are making purchases they deferred during the scary months of 2009.

If the rate of expansion in consumption continues, not only will it begin to whittle away at the unemployment rate, but also stimulate the entire US economy, since consumer spending accounts for 70 percent of the national gross domestic product or GDP.

The housing and mortgage sectors could also begin to show some of that confidence and willingness to spend.  And in fact, the Mortgage Bankers Association reported last week that applications for new loans to buy houses - a bellwether indicator - jumped by seven percent and now stand at their highest level in six months.