Saturday, February 26, 2011 at 8:51AM "My Pick of the Day"
Monday, May 4, 2009 at 10:13AM May 04, 2009: The National Association of Realtors Pending Home Sales Index released today showed an increase in sales of 3.2% in March over February. The increase was better than analysts had anticipated and while not a trend, points to some stability in the housing market with buyers taking advantage of low interest rates, more affordable prices and the $8,000 first time buyer tax credit.
More than 50% of buyers currently in the maret are first time and that is having a marked effect on reducing inventory. New entrants to the market are setting in motion a chain reaction allowing sellers to become buyers, freeing up the logjam of unsold properties, improving liquidity in the market and in turn reducing inventory. It will be interesting to watch the data over the next few months but based on showing activity and buyer traffic that I've had at my own listings in downtown Chicago and surrounding neighborhoods such as Lincoln Park, Lakeview, Bucktown & Wicker Park, I'm optimistic we'll see continued imrovement in the market from the current low levels.
Bucktown, Lakeview, Lincoln Park, Wicker Park | in Home Sales, Housing Inventory