Will home sales perk up this summer?
May 8th, 2008, 10:37 am · Post a Comment · posted by mistywilliams
Here’s the good news: Valley home builders and real estate agents have been reporting more interest from buyers since the beginning of the year.
The bad news is that the increased activity isn’t necessarily translating into actual sales.
So why aren’t buyers actually biting?
Some are still waiting for prices to drop lower. Others harbor worries about the health of the national economy. And experts say tightened lending standards have also made it difficult for many people to qualify for financing.
Still, many industry professionals I’ve talked, along with some national groups, are optimistic that the market will start to come around or at least level off by the end of 2008.
The National Association of Realtors said it expects to see sales begin to improve over the summer. The industry group also estimates sales of existing homes will total 5.39 million this year, then rise 6.1 percent to 5.72 million next year.
