Inside Lending Newsletter From Kristen Zorda, No Place To Go But Up!

QUOTE OF THE WEEK... "When you have exhausted all possibilities, remember this: you haven't." --Thomas Edison, American inventor and businessman

INFO THAT HITS US WHERE WE LIVE... We certainly haven't exhausted all possibilities for the continued recovery of the housing market. A popular finance and economics blog recently pointed out what's right with real estate. For one thing, "new home sales are up significantly from the bottom, but are historically still low," so there's no place for them to go but up. The blog also pointed out that existing home inventory is increasing, a good thing because inventory has been so low. This is also slowing home price increases, another a positive sign pointing to a more normal market.

The National Association of Home builders chief economist opined: "we still expect housing to play a greater role in aiding the overall economic recovery this year. The job market continues to mend and that should spur a steady release of pent up demand among home buyers." Indeed, the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) reported demand for purchase loans up a seasonally adjusted 9% for the week ending May 2, as purchase applications outnumbered refinances for the first time since 2009. The MBA felt that likely reflected the impact of continued growth in the job market.