Market Update

QUOTE OF THE WEEK... "You can't bat a thousand all the time."--Julie Andrews, English actress, singer, author, director and dancer

INFO THAT HITS US WHERE WE LIVE... The housing market didn't bat a thousand last week, as Housing Starts and Building Permits both hit home runs, but Existing Home Sales struck out. The home runs came Wednesday as Housing Starts shot UP 20.2% in April to a very encouraging 1.135 million annual rate, 9.2% ahead of the pace a year ago. The single-family homes part of the market was no slouch, UP 16.7% for the month and 14.7% for the year. Builders are optimistic, as Building Permits went UP 10.1% for the month, to a 1.143 million annual rate. The National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) reported the six-month sales outlook hit its highest reading this year.

Unfortunately, these two home runs were followed by a disappointing strikeout. Existing Home Sales dipped 3.3% in April, to a 5.04 million annual rate, versus the 5.22 million rate expected. But existing home sales have now been above a 5 million unit annual pace two months in a row. And sales are up 6.1% over a year ago, the seventh straight month of annual gains, so demand is obviously growing. April's decline came solely from single-family homes, as condo and coop sales were unchanged. Finally, the median price of an existing home edged higher, to $219,400 (not seasonally adjusted), up 8.9% from a year ago, while average prices are up 5.5% over last year.

BUSINESS TIP OF THE WEEK... It should never be a question of whether you'll succeed, but when. Be confident in the knowledge you'll succeed, and you'll exude that confidence in everything you do.