Good News for Residential Real Estate

There are good signs for the residential real estate sector in the United States. Construction climbed in September which signals a potential boost to the world's largest economy. 

Bloomberg reports that housing starts increased 6.5 percent which is the second-highest level in eight years, figures from the Commerce Department showed Tuesday in Washington. This rise comes as an improving job market allows the American consumer to spend on big-ticket items such as homes and cars.

The economy has added an average of 198,000 jobs this year which is good news for the labor market and allows consumers to actually think about potentially purchasing a home. 

Victoria Stillwell of Bloomberg wrote that "the increase in starts was mainly propelled by gains in work on multifamily homes, such as apartment buildings, which rose 18.3 percent to a 466,000 pace. The advance highlights increasing demand for rentals."

She also stated that "the continued expectation of low interest rates may be part of those prospects." The average 30-year, fixed-rate mortgage was 3.82 percent in the week ended Oct. 15, compared to an average of 6.15 percent in the previous expansion.

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