Well, here's the latest from this corner. The news this past week was very interesting, and, as with a number of other recent weeks, had something for everyone--pro or con. Interest rates continued downward--a very good thing if you're considering buying a home. A mortgage broker friend of mine just yesterday told me he's doing 30 year fixed conventional loans at or below 3.85%. If that's not enough, the decision by the Fed a couple of days ago to sell long term Treasury securities and then use the funds received to buy up short term paper ($400 Billion in each case), is expected to further drive rates downward for the foreseeable future. Potentially, a great buying opportunity gets better!

Housing prices continue, overall, to head higher on a very gradual basis. While it is true that in some locales in the county, some prices have done just the opposite, overall the trend is a slightly upward one. Nationally, prices were up this past month by 19% over a year earlier. These trends, should they continue, when coupled with downward rates, would bode well for sellers.

That's the positive. The negative is that the economy is still dragging along, with unemployment still a major issue and its rate of improvement a very slow one. Job creation in a major way is necessary to get the housing market--and any other one--to really take off. Stay tuned and we'll let you know as things develop.