Wednesday, September 26, 2012

Existing Home Sales; Week of September 21



TRADEX GLOBAL INTERNAL COMMENTARY

Sales of existing previously owned homes climbed to the highest levels in 2 years.  Purchases increased 7.8% to a 4.82 million annual rate.  These are great numbers and it shows that the lowest mortgage rates in history and slowing foreclosures is actually working.  The last quarter posted its first year-over-year gain in prices which could induce sellers and buyers back into the market.  We believe that the housing market has bottomed and our liquid real estate assets are doing well.  The world may be very scary in many different investment sectors, but we believe that the real estate sector has a fair amount of upside. Keep nimble – Michael Beattie

EXTERNAL RESEARCH COMMENTARY
                                    
Sales of previously owned homes and work on single-family projects climbed in August to the highest levels in two years, signaling the residential real-estate market is contributing to the U.S. economic recovery. Purchases of existing houses increased 7.8 percent to a 4.82 million annual rate, the most since May 2010, figures from the National Association of Realtors showed today in Washington. The median forecast of 78 economists surveyed by Bloomberg called for sales to increase to a 4.56 million pace. Commerce Department data showed builders began work on the most one- family homes since April 2010. Record-low mortgage rates, more affordable properties and limited supply of new homes are driving orders at builders such as Toll Brothers Inc. (TOL) and Hovnanian Enterprises Inc. (HOV) In addition, sales of distressed properties are starting to account for a smaller share of the market, leading to gains in home values that are laying the groundwork for a sustained economic expansion as household sentiment and finances improve. “The nascent housing recovery has deepened,” said Ellen Zentner, a senior U.S. economist at Nomura Securities International Inc. in New York, who projected existing-home sales would climb to a 4.85 million rate. “Ultimately, this improvement will lead to a rise in residential wealth, which tends to lift consumer confidence and spending.” The Standard & Poor’s Supercomposite Homebuilders Index (S15HOME) rose 3.1 percent at the close in New York, while the S&P 500 gained 0.1 percent. The pickup in housing helps explain why the index of builder shares, including PulteGroup Inc. and D.R. Horton Inc., has surged 83 percent this year, outpacing a 16 percent gain in the broader S&P 500.

Tradex Global Advisory Services, LLC
investorrelations@thetradexgroup.com 
203-863-1500
@Tradex_Global

No comments:

Post a Comment