Housing market defying predictions of doom

Existing-home sales defied frenzied predictions of disaster by remaining steady throughout the nation in July, according to a report released by the National Association of Realtors in late August.
"The market is holding on despite temporary mortgage disruptions," said NAR Senior Economist Lawrence Yun. "Home sales probably would be rising in the absence of the mortgage liquidity issues of the past two months," he said. "Some buyers with contracts have been scrambling when loan commitments did not materialize at the last moment, while other potential buyers are simply waiting for the mortgage market to stabilize. The rise in sales and prices in the Northeast region in recent months is promising because this was the first region that underwent sales and price weakness after the boom. Now, it appears that it will be the first region to climb back, indicating that other regions could follow a similar path," Yun said.