2009 Home Sales Up - Prices Down

In 2009, for the first time in four years, sales of previously owned homes rose. December 2009 did have a slump due to the tax credit that led many buyers to complete their deals earlier. Prices plunged more than 12 percent last year, this being the sharpest fall since the Great Depression. The price drop showed the housing market still remains too weak to help fuel a sustained economic recovery said the experts.

Many have concerns that home sales will soften after March 31, when the Fed is set to end its program to buy mortgage securities to keep home loan rates low and many think that once that program ends, mortgage rates will climb to as high as 6 percent. A newly extended homebuyer tax credit of up to $8000 is set to run out at the end of April, adding to the worries.

For all of 2009, total sales were up 5 percent from 2008, totaling nearly 5.2 million.

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