San Francisco Real Estate - Residential

Leading Indicators Forecast Housing Crash

This article was posted today from NewsMax.com. Again with the negativity in forecasting gloom and doom about a coming housing crash. Remember that all markets are not created equal.

What we want to do on our website is point to what is actually happening in the San Francisco real estate market by giving you an accurate weekly appraisal by Avram Goldman, President and COO of Coldwell Banker, San Francisco Bay Area .

Here's what Newsmax is reporting.

- Mick Orton
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A key gauge of future economic activity fell unexpectedly for the fourth time this year amid signs of a slowing housing market, according to a report released by a private research group Thursday.

The so-called U.S. index of Leading Indicators declined 0.1 percent in July to 138.1 after inching up 0.1 percent a month earlier, according to the New York-based Conference Board. Wall Street economists in a Reuters survey were expecting the index to advance by a modest 0.1 percent.

"The economy is cooling but it isn't likely to stall out," said the firm's labor economist Ken Goldstein. "The cooling off in the housing market has been more pronounced, however, and is one factor in the softer domestic pace of economic activity."

Meanwhile, the coincident index - a measure of current economic activity -rose 0.2 percent last month, building on a 0.2 percent gain a month earlier. So far this year, this index has logged monthly gains.

The leading index measures a basket of economic indicators ranging from unemployment benefit claims to building permits and is intended to forecast economic trends up to six months ahead.
According to the Conference Board, half of the ten indicators that make up the leading index increased in July, but it was mainly a decline in building permits and a steady number of weekly claims for jobless benefits that drove down the index.

© 2006 Reuters.

Editor's Note:

Housing prices nationwide could fall by as much as 40% over the next few years. Here are the five easy ways to protect yourself and profit from the coming real estate crisis. Go here now.

- NewsMax.com

posted by SFResidence.com @ 7:50 AM