2011 Economic and Housing Outlooks Brighten According to Fannie Mae Analysis Group

For 2011, forecasted growth was upgraded from 2.9 percent to 3.4 percent based on the positives in the recent reports. The forecast anticipates improving labor market conditions, despite the huge disappointment from the November employment report. The housing recovery should gain momentum going into 2011 if the expected stronger labor market materializes.

“Despite rising mortgage rates, our forecast for home sales is stronger than the previous forecast, given our brighter economic growth and labor market outlook,” said Fannie Mae Chief Economist Doug Duncan. “We expect modest increases in home sales, despite recent interest rate rises, due in part to modest additional declines in home prices, and we expect people to take advantage of affordability as their employment and income outlook brightens.”