Yet the signs continue to mount that a recovery is underway. Off 5.8% for March, Housing Starts are up 10.3% from a year ago, to a 654,000 unit annual rate. The monthly drop came from volatile multi-family starts, while single-family units were down only 0.2%. And the number of homes under construction was up for the seventh month in a row! Even Building Permits are up 30.1% versus a year ago. It’s early in the home building recovery, but some are saying we could get to 1.5 million units by 2016.
More signs the housing market is recovering slowly but surely came with March Existing Home Sales. Although off 2.6% for the month, at 4.48 million units, they’re up 5.2% over a year ago. In addition, the median price rose in March to $163,800 and is up 2.5% over a year ago, while the months’ supply of inventory stayed at 6.3. Frankly, no one expects a big bump in home sales soon, but the market is definitely beginning to heal, as it’s obviously a great time to buy.