Has the Housing Market Finally Hit Bottom?

Jan. 15 (Bloomberg) -- Maggie Medved was stuck with her Phoenix house for two years after the market crash wiped out the equity in the property. Last year, as prices in the area rose by the most in the U.S., she and her partner were finally able to sell the 3-bedroom 1950’s style home and move to a larger place.

This is the first real good news I've seen in the housing market:  rental rates finally seem to be stabilizing.  Rents rose in 60 of the 79 metro areas tracked by Reis, a real-estate research firm.

Real estate, and the careers that depend upon it, is a boom-bust business in the age of inflation. The illusion of wealth is everywhere..until it is snatched away. That’s why it’s a great time for David Mamet’s Pulitzer Prize winning “Glengarry Glen Ross” to make its third appearance on the Broadway stage. It’s a show about Chicago real estate salesmen selling Florida properties through deception and intimidation.

Back in September, I wrote about the importance of diversification even as the market hits new highs as it did during that month when the S&P 500 edged above 1,400.

Without a doubt, the U.S. housing market has been the most successful sector of the economy this year, and Wednesday’s Case-Shiller home price index report — which showed a fifth consecutive month of year-over-year increases in home prices nationwide — was a late Christmas present for homeowners across the country. The housing market “bottom” was one of the biggest business stories of 2012.

Without a doubt, the U.S. housing market has been the most successful sector of the economy this year, and Wednesday’s Case-Shiller home price index report — which showed a fifth consecutive month of year-over-year increases in home prices nationwide — was a late Christmas present for homeowners across the country. The housing market “bottom” was one of the biggest business stories of 2012.

According to Zillow, U.S. home prices rose again in January.  In fact, we're witnessing the fastest pace of price growth since July 2006, which was during the housing bubble. From Zillow:

By Sol Palha: "There is no greater folly in the world than for a man to despair." Cervantes Saavedra