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Home sales and prices both posted modest increases in May, reflecting normal seasonal trends but also raising hopes that a more sustained recovery may finally be in sight.

Closed sales transactions were up 3.3 percent in May over April’s levels, the national real estate company RE/MAX reported today, while average sales prices were up by 3.7 percent. It was the third consecutive monthly price increase the company has reported and the first increase in sales since January.    “Home sales activity appears to be coming back in line with the seasonal trends we would expect to see this time of year,” said Margaret Kelly, RE/MAX CEO. “It’s a very good sign that prices are starting to rise on a monthly basis. This may indicate that we’ve turned the corner and are headed in a positive direction.”   Both home sales and prices continue to trail their levels of one year ago, although not as badly as in recent months. Home sales were Full Post…

Pending home sales rose modestly in July, two months after taking a steep plunge that put the housing market into the doldrums.

Signed contracts for home sales rose 5.2 percent in July, the National Association of Realtors (NAR) reported today, the first sign that the housing market is recovering from the end of the homebuyer tax credit. Pending sales plunged nearly 30 percent in May and another 2.8 percent in June after the credit expired. The report was a spark of good news for the battered housing market. Analysts had expected a decline of 1-2 percent.  Pending sales are considered a leading indicator, preceding actual sales – meaning closings – by one to two months, and the unexpected boost suggests the hangover from the end of the tax credit may be less severe than expected.   Home sales were brisk in the early months of the year, and most analysts believe the tax credit spurred many buyers to act sooner than they might have otherwise. As a r Full Post…