Today the Federal Reserve Bank released the latest Beige Book data, and it showed signs of economic improvement in 8 of the 12 Fed Bank areas, led in part by residential housing. While we don’t have a Fed Bank located in Austin that reports on our local economy, we can extract some overall market data from the report, and also keep a close eye on the Dallas report since it’s our closest Fed Bank.
The summary of the report shows that home prices have continued to decline in the eastern Fed districts, but in Dallas housing prices were seen as firmed and stabilized. Looking at this data in conjunction with the recent ABOR housing stats that came out for this quarter (showing almost a 40% surge in residential sales volume), and it is evident that the national and Austin real estate markets are well on the road to recovery.
Only four Fed Banks revealed data that did not show signs of improvement in their areas: Philadelphia, Cleveland, Richmond and Atlanta.
What is the Beige Book?
For those who aren’t familiar with the term, the Beige Book is a compilation of data from the nation’s 12 Federal districts. Data is obtained by each area’s top economists, business leaders and market experts. It is seen as an overall report on the nation’s economic picture, and Beige Books are prepared 8 times per year.
