Grand Traverse region mirrors national trends
There's some good news regarding the nation's housing market. Analysts say the housing market appears to have stabilized. Kim Pontius with the Traverse Area Association of Realtors says northern Michigan's housing market is experiencing similar growth.
Nationwide, the median sales price for a home is still down more than 15 percent from this time last year - but the price went up from May to June.
But Pontius says the industry is also watching interest rates, and the job market. Especially in Michigan - hiring workers means bringing them to the state, and that means they'll be looking for housing.
Sales of previously-owned homes rose 3.6 percent in June, and it's the third consecutive monthly increase - seen as a sign that a housing recovery is under way in much of the country. It was the highest level of sales since October 2008 and beat economists' expectations. It comes despite the foreclosures of the past - and those that are yet to come. Pontius says there could be another wave of foreclosures hitting the market in 2010.
