Daily Real Estate News  |  April 17, 2009  |   Signs Point to Improving Economy
Economic observers point to several factors that indicate the economy in general and the housing market in particular may be on the mend.

Positive signs include:

● Sales of single-family homes in March remained flat compared to January and February at $358,000, the U.S. Commerce Department reported.
● The Labor Department reported claims were down in the week ending April 11. While some argued this could just reflect the shortened Easter/Passover holiday, others took the optimistic view that some segments of the economy are stabilizing.
● New-home construction remains low because there is so much inventory—but the situation doesn’t appear to be worsening.

"The economy is still very weak, but there are some encouraging signs that support cautious optimism," Dennis Lockhart, president of the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta, said in a speech Thursday.

Source: The Wall Street Journal, Sudeep Reddy (04/17/2009)