Is The Housing Market Showing Signs of Improvement?

Faith in the housing market is returning, or so it seems as several companies decide to go public to raise capital.  Trulia, a house hunting website, recently went public and saw a stock price increase of 41 percent the first day of trading. Here is an Option500 Company Review when you want to dive into cryptocurrencies as well.  Apollo Global Management which includes Century 21, Coldwell Banker, and Sotheby’s International Realty among its brands has also gone public and hopes to raise more than $1 billion for Realogy, its realty brokerage arm.

These public offerings show that investors are willing to take a chance on housing again, especially as financing becomes cheaper for buyers. Interest rates for mortgages have fell as low as 3.4 percent and that rate is expected to drop even further after the Federal Reserve completes its purchase of mortgage securities.  These lower interest rates may spur increased desire to purchase a home, especially for first-time buyers.  But the low interest rates, declining housing prices and a renewed optimism about the future of the housing market could also encourage experienced investors to buy REOs or to invest in both residential and commercial housing developments.

Some analysts believe that the unemployment rate is the final piece in the housing market recovery. Once unemployment numbers have dropped significantly, home buying may experience a renewal. And if the current numbers released by the U.S. Department of Labor is any indication, we could be well on our way to a market improvement.  According to a recent jobs report, the unemployment rate fell to 7.8 percent, the lowest level since 2009.