The National Association of Realtors posted the numbers for January this year today. Sales are up slightly from last year, but posted a seven month low falling 7.2% to an adjusted rate of 5.o5 million. Economists were hoping for a number closer to 5.50 million which might indicate a light the end of the bleak real estate tunnel. This was not the case and the housing market shows no signs of real recovery as of yet.
Sales were the worst in the Northeast falling 10.9%, while sales in the South were down 7.4%, sales in the Midwest fell to 6.9% and sales in the West were down 5.2%. For the second month in a row despite the extension of the new home buyer tax credit to April of 2010, the sales of existing homes dropped. New home sales are also at an all time low.
So for now our volatile housing market continues to decline despite predictions of a stronger showing in 2010. Will it ever get better? There is some good news to be gleaned from January’s abysmal numbers: they are better than numbers a year ago. Maybe there is some hope for our unstable real estate market yet.
I hope housing sales get better this year. I don’t think we can stand another year like last year.