The news on housing and the economy in general seems to be slightly more hopeful this year. It’s possible to read an occasional piece about things getting better among the bleak predictions that usually dominate financial headlines. Among these bright spots is the NAHB’s Improving Markets Index (IMI), co-sponsored by First American. The IMI launched in September 2011 to encourage lenders to loan by showing them data on places where housing permits and prices as well as employment figures have improved steadily for at least six months. And the NAHB’s monthly updates about those improving housing markets have steadily brought good news. There were 13 metropolitan areas on the IMI when it launched nearly six months ago, and as of Feb. 6 that number has grown to 98—close to a 750 percent increase.
The upward climb is not limited to specific regions. As of the latest IMI, 36 states spread across the country are represented on the index. Although seven areas dropped off in February, including two major cities—Washington, D.C. and New Orleans—the overall outlook indicates that homeowners and buyers are gaining confidence in the market and things are improving for home builders. According to NAHB chief economist David Crowe, it also shows that the economy in general is headed in the right direction. “While many of the markets on the February IMI are far from fully recovered, the index points out where employment, home prices, and housing production are no longer retreating and have held above their lowest recession troughs for six months or more,” Crowe states in the report. “This is a sign that a large cross section of the country is starting to turn the corner as local economic conditions stabilize.”
