While most headlines about the economy are negative, and most pundits believe that our economy will still continue to weaken before it improves, not all news is bad news. Take a look at the positive news articles I found during the last two weeks.
Muted Signs of Life In the Credit Markets
It is hard to miss the news: the stock market has been on a bit of a roll lately. But with far less fanfare, the credit markets, where the financial crisis began, are also showing signs of a spring awakening.
Mortgage Rates Starting To Become More Affordable
CHICAGO (Dow Jones) - Jumbo mortgages became more expensive and harder to come by as the nation's credit crisis deepened. That might be starting to change.
Stocks Leap as Fears Ebb - Investors Show Stomach for Risk on European Rate Cut, U.S. Accounting Rule Changes
A wave of stock buying swept across the globe, as upbeat economic news from China, an interest-rate cut in Europe and a change in U.S. accounting rules spurred new investor appetite for risk.
As the Foreclosed Move Out, First-Time Buyers Are Moving In
MIAMI - While her friends ran up credit card debt and bought show homes beyond their means, Taina Goldman saved for a down payment. She moved back in with her parents, sharing a room with her young daughter, ate in and worked two jobs.
Goldman economist sees signs of US gloom lifting
CHICAGO, April 1 (Reuters) - The U.S. economy is showing the first signs in months that it could be getting ready to crawl out of a long recession, the top economist at Goldman Sachs said on Wednesday.
Second Quarter Commences With a Rally
Wall Street continued to rally Wednesday, lifting shares from some of their worst levels in more than a decade. Investors essentially shrugged off a report that said the economy had lost 742,000 jobs in the private sector in March.
US Pending Home Sales Index +2.1% In Feb - NAR
WASHINGTON (Dow Jones) - A forecasting gauge of home sales rose more than expected in February after hitting a record low the month before. The National Association of Realtors' index for pending sales of previously owned homes jumped 2.1% to ...
Most housing indexes overstate downturn -analysts
NEW YORK, March 30 (Reuters) - Most closely watched U.S. home price measures lack enough local data to truly reflect house values and are overstating the extent of price drops, executives at a real estate analytics firm said on Monday.
Pockets of strength push US housing market rebound
NEW YORK, March 27 (Reuters) - The tide is turning in some parts of the long suffering U.S. housing market, with several regions, such as hard hit California, showing signs of life.
Battered homebuilders' shares may bottom out and could be poised for recovery, analyst says
NEW YORK (AP) - Stocks of homebuilders may be close to bottoming out and are poised for recovery, an analyst said Thursday, boosting builders' shares.
In Housing and Other Big-Ticket Markets, Early Stirrings of Hope
After several months of relentlessly grim economic news, analysts have been looking for any indication that the pace of the economy's deterioration is slowing. Recently, they have had at least some reason to hope.
First-time US homebuyers likely to purchase -poll
NEW YORK, March 26 (Reuters) - Buying a home has never been more affordable by some measures, and potential first-time U.S. buyers said they are likely to buy a home in the next two years, a survey released on Thursday found.
New-home sales rebound after record low in January; February gain in sales first since last July
WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) - Sales of new homes nationwide rebounded by 4.7% in February after hitting a record low in the prior month, the Commerce Department reported Wednesday
Evans: Fed's efforts to trigger
CHICAGO, March 24 (Reuters) - The Federal Reserve could expand its already vast efforts to restore normal functioning in financial markets, and its actions ultimately will help restore global economic growth, a top Fed policy-maker said on Tuesday.
New mortgages swell as Fed drives down rates - MBA
NEW YORK, March 24 (Reuters) - Mortgage demand has ballooned after Federal Reserve actions drove down U.S. borrowing costs, and could propel home loans created this year to the fourth highest total on record, the ...
Home prices rise for first time in a year, FHFA says; Home values down 6.3% in past year, federal housing agency says
To view the report, go to http://www.fhfa.gov/webfiles/1853/MonthlyHPI32409.pdf
WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) - U.S. home prices rose 1.7% in January compared with December, the Federal Housing Finance Agency reported Tuesday. It was the first monthly increase in a year.
The Wallet: Recession Bump? Credit Scores May Be Rising.
Credit scores may be improving, according to data released last week by consumer credit-score tracking service Credit Karma. The U.S. Credit Score Climate Report, which included 24,000 Credit Karma users, found the average score of those...
A Big Boost for Buyers Seeking Jumbo Loans
New money is about to flow into a part of the real estate market that has been squeezed hard by the credit crisis: mortgages too large to be purchased or backed by Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac or the Federal Housing Administration.
One in Five Americans Plan to Buy a Home Despite Economic Conditions
LOS ANGELES, March 23 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ - While half (52%) of all Americans are concerned they or someone they know will face foreclosure in the next six to 12 months, 23% of adults plan to purchase a home in the next five years, and more than half of them (53.5%) are first time homebuyers
Home Buyers Stir Hope in California
MOUNTAIN HOUSE, Calif. - California's mortgage crisis hit this master-planned community particularly hard last year, and eventually 90% of mortgage holders here owed more than their homes were worth.
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