We're not even a third of the way through the year, and already the story with housing has changed at least a couple of times.
In the early part of the year, there was a lot of enthusiasm about a housing recovery: All aspects from construction to existing home sales, and possibly even prices seemed to be getting better.
The homebuiler stocks were surging (actually they'd been surging since late last fall, and the early months of the year saw a continuation).
Then we ran into a data brick wall. At the end of March we got a big string of disappointing numbers, as we rounded up here.
The homebuilder stocks that went on to tank. In early April, it looked like investors had obviously been drinking too much Kool-Aid, and that the pain would continue.
But! Housing is actually showing a pulse.
This week, Northern Trust's Asha Bangalore went through some of the charts showing recovery.
Sure it's modest, but the trend in new homes sales is going in the right direction.
Existing home sales: On the right path.
Months supply of homes for sale is plummeting nicely.
And Case-Shiller Housing Index did register a rare sequential gain, with 13 out of 20 cities improving sequentially.
So there is a pulse. And the market is starting to believe again.
Look at the homebuilder stocks now. After that disturbing early-April collapse, they've come back furiously, pushing new highs.
It's too early to get excited or sound the all clear. But it's a very good sign that the hiccup we saw last month didn't continue. And if the positive trends continue, it will be very bullish for the economy overall.
Please follow Money Game on Twitter and Facebook.
Join the conversation about this story »