Good Housing News Cheers, But Still a Long Way to Go

It’s difficult to know what to make of the better than expected housing numbers announced Wednesday.

Increases in new and existing home sales were not fully expected, but certainly provided some more sunshine to weary and wary investors.

The gains were significant, but we must keep them in context. The housing market has been bad for so long that even a small bit of good news seems more dramatic.

Still, we’ll take what we can get. The housing crisis in a long way from stabilizing, so don’t be surprised if the bad news continues to overshadow the good.

Until the financial markets regain enough confidence to dramatically increase lending, the housing market won’t fully stabilize and the economy won’t begin a rebound.

However, remember the stock market will probably lead the economy in any rebound.