Your blogger's inbox was filled with reports this morning that address this critical question: will 2012 be the year the housing market stabilizes? That, of course, assuming no unexpected disasters (financial, or otherwise) that might shake the global economy. Here's what I found this morning:
- The Mortage Banker's Association's weekly mortgage application survey increased 23.1 percent from a week earlier on a seasonally adjusted basis.
- The Architecture Billings Index, a measure of construction activity, was positive for the second straight month.
- The latest CoreLogic MarketPulse report, which notes improving consumer sentiment, said "housing statistics and the duration of the housing downturn to date indicate that 2012 may be the year we begin to turn the corner."
- Lending Tree's 2012 new home sales forecast says that the 2012 new construction will remain constrained, but will increase 11 percent compared with last year.
- Freddie Mac's January Economic and Housing outlook says that while a "speedy recovery seems unlikely this year," the group expects home sales to rise 2 to 5 percent compared with 2011.
