Written by:
Laiyin Li

Nesting: Response to the bleak housing market

The price of U.S. houses is forecasted to plummet over the next two years despite the slow recovery of the economy. Tight credit loans, a stagnant housing market and common economic sense are the key drivers in the new trend for home-owners to “nest”, i.e. choose remodeling over “re-settling”: It is simply too hard to obtain financing for a new house when the house-sales won’t even close, and it is generally more affordable to upgrade an existing house than construct a new one. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, 20% more of the home construction dollar of the first three quarters of 2009 went to home improvements, as compared to the same period last year. CNN.com calls “nesters” “the icons of the new housing market."

Photo courtesy of Geograph.