Gratitude and Optimism for Real Estate ? Real Estate Japan | Tokyo ...

Tokyo Real EstateGratitude makes way for optimism as we near the Thanksgiving holiday this week. Some of the best housing news we?ve heard all year landed on Monday as the?stock market rallied?after a new home builder index showed higher confidence and Congress hinted that a deal may be reached soon on the fiscal cliff problem.
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Home builder confidence climbed in November for the seventh straight month to the highest level in more than six years, according to a?housing index?released by the National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo. The index increased 5 points to a seasonally adjusted level of 46, the highest point since May 2006.
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Builder confidence has always been a closely watched market indicator. It was one of the first housing indicators to improve, rising from 19 in November a year ago.
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In a second round of good news on Monday, the National Association of Realtors?reported?existing home sales were up 2.1% in October from the previous month and up 10.9% from the same month a year ago to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.79 million. At the same time, the national median existing home price for all housing types was $178,600 in October, 11.1% above a year ago, and the eighth consecutive month of year-over-year increases.
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NAR notes that the rise in home prices is working to create substantial growth in home equity, resulting in a total growth of $760 billion in home equity over the past year.
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The news to watch coming out of NAR this week also is total housing inventory. Many markets have struggled with low inventory levels this year, which has created tight conditions for first-time buyers. Total housing inventory at the end of October fell 1.4% to 2.14 million existing homes for sale, a 5.4-month supply, according to NAR. This represents a 21.9% decline from a year ago, when housing supply stood at 7.6 months.
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Aside from overall economic and fiscal concerns, supply is the potential wildcard going into the 2013 housing and mortgage market. With record low interest rates holding steady, buying will continue to draw a lot of buyers to market next year. Some markets may continue to struggle, though, with the amount of homes for sale. Buyers can also expect a steady appetite from investors, which could make it even more difficult in some markets.
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With builder sentiment up, though, we?ll likely see much more new home building activity across the country.
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All of this is shaping up to make 2013 look like it could be the home seller?s year ? the first in far too long.

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Source: http://www.realestate.co.jp/2012/11/21/gratitude-and-optimism-for-real-estate/

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