Current Housing Indicators |
| CURRENT | PREVIOUS | ||
| Existing Home Sales | 4.49m | ▼ | 4.74m |
| New Home Sales | 309,000 | ▼ | 344,000 |
| Housing Starts | 583,000 | ▲ | 477,000 |
| Building Permits | 547,000 | ▲ | 531,000 |
| HMI | 9 | UNCH | 9 |
| Existing Home Prices | $170,300 | ▼ (annually) | $199,800 |
| New Home Prices | $201,100 | ▼ (annually) | $232,400 |
More Videos
- Treasury Threatens Banks, Not Borrowers
- Treasury On Mortgage Modifications
- Citi Mortgage Reveals What Treasury Won't
- Investors May Skew Housing Reality
- 100% Mortgage Financing From USDA
- Despite Government Aid, Foreclosure Crisis is Not Improving
- Housing Data Delivers Mixed Messages
- Appraisals Now Center Stage in Housing Recovery
- Underwater Mortgages Could Sink Even Deeper
- First Time Buyers Rescue Housing: Realtors
MOST SHARED
- Timeless and Time-Tested Warren Buffett Watch Predictions
- Goldman Sachs Party Ban: No Gatherings of 12 or More
- Should Homeowners Be Able To Walk Away From Mortgage?
- Dubai World Set to Restructure About $26 Billion of Total Debt
- Nov. 30: Unusual Volume Leaders
- Blue Nile CEO: 'We're Having the Best Cyber Monday Ever'
- Treasury Threatens Banks, Not Borrowers
- Oil Demand Sees Year-Over-Year Rise, First Since 2007
- Notre Dame Fires Charlie Weis After 5 Seasons
- Bove: 26 Banks May Need To Raise More Capital
- Treasury Threatens Banks, Not Borrowers
- We're Approaching a Market Bubble: Portfolio Manager
- Hershey Shares: What Options Are Saying
- Nov. 30: Unusual Volume Leaders
- Why Careful Shoppers Are Great for the Box Office
- Blue Nile CEO: 'We're Having the Best Cyber Monday Ever'
- Best Online Retailers to Buy Now: Internet Analyst
- ESPN The Magazine’s Body Issue: A Financial Success
- Cyber Monday: The Last Vestige of Dotcom Hype
- White House to Crank Up Pressure on Mortgage Industry
- Treasury Threatens Banks, Not Borrowers
- Dubai World to Restructure About $26 Billion of Debt
- Cramer: Dubai Can’t Sink These 6 Dividend Stocks
- Bove: 26 Banks May Need To Raise More Capital
- Lesson From Dubai: Start Cutting Risk In Your Portfolio
- Iranian Seizure of British Yacht Pushes Oil Above $77
- Should Homeowners Be Able to Stop Paying Mortgage?
- Buffett's Predictions For Next Year—And Every Year
RSS FEED
Realty Check
Text Size 
 |
CNBC.com |
The trouble is in my neck of the woods: real estate. According to the December Jobs report, the real estate sector added 5,400 jobs in the month and is even above the number for December of 2006. How can that be, when real estate agents are fleeing the business? According to the National Association of Realtors, membership has dropped just 2 percent from its peak in August of 2007, but that’s membership only.
I heard from the NAR’s chief economist earlier this week that a quarter of all real estate agents in California didn’t even make a sale in 2007, so I’m guessing a lot of those NAR members aren’t actually working.
I called the Bureau of Labor Statistics, and they say that number doesn’t even include mortgage brokers; they fall under Financial Services. I was thinking that maybe the surge was all that new staff needed to help folks refinance, but no. I emailed David Lereah, who used to work for the NAR but went corporate last year. All he could surmise was it might be real estate jobs related to foreclosed properties.
Questions? Comments?
Data is a real-time snapshot *Data is delayed at least 15 minutes