8 Signs Housing Is on the Mend (National Trends)

1. Housing prices are on the rise across the country. For the last 12 months ending in May, U.S. home prices have increased 3.7 percent.
2. Foreclosures have slowed. Analysts suggest that as the supply of distressed homes slows, buyers will be going into higher-price properties (more traditional sales).
3. Inventories of for-sale homes on the market are decreasing. In fact, inventories of for-sale homes have dropped 24 percent from a year ago.
4. Mortgage rates are at ultra record level lows.
5. Housing starts rose 6.9 percent in June. Also, existing-home sales were up 4.5 percent higher in June compared to one year ago.
6. Home building stocks are on the rise.
7. For investors who are buying homes, rents are soaring, allowing them to cash in on their investments. Rental prices are at a 10-year high as medium units rent for $710 a month.
8. .Home affordability is at record highs for the median income family, due to falling home values and super low mortgage rates. A recent study found that it is cheaper to buy a home than rent in basically ever major city in the U.S. For those who buy, you can save the cost of renting by owning the home for five years or less.
9. The Wall Street Journal concludes in a recent article that if you take into account all the positive signs lately in the housing market, "housing presents an attractive long-term investment that should hold steady or even have upside surprise in the short term."