Housing starts, sales and prices to rise in 2013, aiding national economic recovery

Economists expect home sales and prices to rise in 2013 — solidifying the national housing recovery which began last year. As the inventory of distressed homes shrinks, homebuilders are adding supply, which is in turn helping to spur economic growth, Bloomberg News reported.

“Everywhere we are, we can see it,” Larry Webb, CEO of California-based New Home, told Bloomberg News. “Talk about pent-up demand.”

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Existing home sales are predicted to rise 7.2 percent in 2013, to 4.98 million — the largest volume of home sales in the U.S. since 2007 — and housing starts, including single- and multi-family units, are expected to increase 24 percent, to 967,000 this year. Those numbers are based on the median estimates of 15 economists and real estate analysts. [Bloomberg News] –Guelda Voien