Home Sales Raised By Foreclosures And Cash Purchases

While many consumers have struggled with debt in recent months, due to the large amount of recent foreclosures the market has showed improvement for prospective homebuyers looking to save money.

Foreclosures sell for much cheaper than traditional sales, and because of the increase in availability of these homes, consumers who are looking to buy property may find they are now more affordable.

The National Association of Realtors reported that housing sales were up 2.7 percent during the month of January. This was due to the fact that many consumers and investors are becoming more interested in buying foreclosed properties, as they can often be bought cheaply with cash.

"Home prices continue to languish," Steven Wood, a chief economist for Insight economics, told the news source. "Any recovery will be difficult to sustain given the still-large supplies of homes for sale and distressed properties."

Despite encouraging signs in the market, there is a looming possibility that it will take even longer to recover, which may in turn cause problems for the economy. Still, many industry experts say the increased confidence shown by prospective homebuyers could be a sign of improvements to come.