Jobless Rate Falls. First Time since 2007

Jobless Rate Falls. First Time since 2007

The state unemployment rate fell last month for the first time in nearly three years as Massachusetts employers added thousands of jobs, the clearest sign yet that the economic recovery is gaining strength, the state reported yesterday.

The job gains were broad based, spreading across sectors from retail to technology to financial services, and apparently strong enough to bring down the unemployment rate even as thousands more residents entered the labor market in search of work.

“It is hard to see anything bad in this,’’ Alan Clayton-Matthews, an economics professor at Northeastern University, said of the report.

See the rest of the article at Boston.com

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Pending Homes Sales up 9th Month in a Row.

WALTHAM, MA. – April 6, 2010 – The Massachusetts Association of REALTORS® (MAR) reported the number of single-family homes placed under agreement in March 2010 was up 27 percent over March 2009, and condominiums were up 38 percent. March is the ninth straight month that the number of both single-family homes and condominiums placed under agreement had increased over the year before.

“It appears that the record rains in March didn’t keep buyers from taking advantage of the market conditions and making offers on homes,” said 2010 MAR President Kevin Sears, broker/co-owner of Sears Real Estate in Springfield. “Whether the rain will impact how many of these deals close is still a question, but the buyers are out there and that is a good sign for the market.”

There were 4,808 single family homes put under contract in March 2010, compared to 3,783 in March 2009. On a month-to-month basis (which really doesn't mean squat because of seasonal & monthly fluctuations), single-family homes put under agreement were up 37.8 percent from 3,489 homes in February.

The number of condos put under agreement in March was 2,1222 compared to March 2009 with 1,543 units.

Jim Armstrong