Sales of previously owned homes jumped up 5.1% in February which is the largest jump in nearly six years as first-time buyers took advantage of foreclosures and deeply discounted properties.
Economists feel that even though sales are still slow, the market may finally be coming back to life after the stock market plunge late last year.
Despite the increase in sales, prices are expected to keep falling further into the year.
The housing market's biggest supporter is jobs, and if possible buyers are worried about having a job tomorrow then they're not likely to buy a home just yet.
The National Association of Realtors has reported that the sales of existing homes grew by 4.72 million last month as compared to 4.49 million units in January which was the biggest monthly sales jump since July of 2003.
At this point the current sales figures do not reflect the new $8,000 tax credit but that should start showing up in early summer sales.
Should the economy start to stabilize by July and financial conditions improve, it is forecasted that sales will probably begin to slowly increase as buyers step back into the market helped by both lower prices and lower mortgage rates.
Another good indicator that the market might be on the upswing is that asking prices are starting to rise in San Diego and Orange County, where declines have been so hard hit.