Wednesday, May 16, 2012

Residential construction is definitely improving


For several months we've seen emerging evidence of the long-awaited upturn in residential construction, and now with today's April figures and upward revisions to prior months, it looks pretty official: the housing market has bottomed and is now posting impressive gains—up 30% in the past year, and up 50% from the 2009 low—that should be the norm for the next several years. If a recovery in the residential construction market was the one key piece missing from the US recovery, it is now in place. I find it hard to believe that today's troubles in tiny Greece are going to derail the giant US economy.

8 comments:

brodero said...

No recession has started unless housing starts or building permits were negative percentage wise year
over year...

Anonymous said...

Told ya

Damn I'm good. :-)

Benjamin Cole said...

Signs of life....The Fed has pulled leeches off of the anemia patient, but still no blood transfusion.

Rob said...

Scott, us longtime readers of your blog are used to a bit more comment about Argentina when you travel there ... you did indeed provide some interesting observations but I just wondered if you had any more thoughts or reflections based on this latest trip ?
Many thanks !

Scott Grannis said...

I'm indeed overdue for a wrap-up post on Argentina.

Charles said...

It would be interesting to look at the regional patterns of housing starts. Recovery should begin in areas that were not overbuilt and that are enjoying a strong recovery. The unemployed are probably concentrated in states like California, Nevada, Arizona, and Florida - places where the housing boom was the driving force behind the local economy. How long will it be before construction recovers in Las Vegas?

I agree that Greece is a problem for the Greeks and the fools that bought their bonds. No one has come up with a credible scenario where what happens in Greece affects the US to the extent that the US economy ceases to grow at a snail's pace.

McKibbinUSA said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
mmanagedaccounts said...

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