After a rough end to the week for consumer and investor confidence levels[1], American morale appears to be on the rise this week as a Prudential Real Estate survey indicates that 68 percent of potential homebuyers and home-sellers expect that their property values will recover in the next year or two[2]. This time last year, only 47 percent expected that home prices would rise. The survey also indicated that about 60 percent of the respondents are more interested in buying real estate than they were a year ago, and that 89 percent are well aware that they can buy a “new house at a better price.”

While Americans appear to be confident about the value of their properties rising, early sales numbers for 2011 seem to indicate that their confidence could be a little misplaced at least in the short term. CoreLogic has reported that home prices have new lows in early 2011, with national home prices (including distressed sales) declining by 5.7 percent in the past year[3]. This is lower than the previous post-bubble low set in March of 2009.

While these numbers look both contradictory and bleak, they could actually work in tandem to help drag the housing market out of the doldrums over the next 24 to 36 months. Do you think that overall these reports indicate a positive trend?

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[1]http://business.bryanellis.com/?p=21

[2] http://rismedia.com/2011-03-13/americans-confident-in-recovery-of-real-estate-market/

[3] http://www.coosavalleynews.com/np90002.htm