Housing continues to recover across the nation, according to the National Association of Home Builders. The NAHB/First American Improving Markets Index (IMI) for September shows that a total of 291 metropolitan areas are faring better in housing. That’s a gain of 44 metro areas since August and the highest point in the two years since the Index was started.
NAHB Chairman Rick Judson notes that over 80 percent of the 361 metros tracked by the IMI are demonstrating positive momentum. “While there is still plenty of room for growth, this is an excellent indication of how the housing recovery has begun to take hold across more geographic areas.”
The IMI bases its numbers on three sources — gains in housing permits reported by the U.S. Census Bureau, employment growth from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, and house price appreciation from Freddie Mac.