Housing Market Shows Further Signs of Strength

The National Association of Realtors released data for July that showed sales of existing homes climbed 2.3 percent to a 4.47 million annual rate. This marginally missed a Bloomberg analyst forecast of a 4.51 million rate, though raised the likelihood of a further recovery in housing in the latter half of the year. It appears that ultra-low mortgage levels, cheaper real estate, and improving numbers for employment and consumer points are turning the fortunes of the housing industry. In a sign that home prices may have bottomed out, the median price of an existing home rose 9.4 percent from last…