The housing market has been one of the most ailed sectors in the U.S. economy. The home mortgage bubble that led up to the collapse of the financial market in 2008 has been a major cause of continued market hardships. Meanwhile, home prices have been plummeting parallel to mortgage rates.

However, prices recently began to bottom out on a few signs of improved sales. Existing home sales grew by 7.7 percent to a seasonally adjusted yearly rate of 5.03 million - 18.6 percent above the August 2010 level, according to Money Morning.

Still, economists expect conditions in the residential real estate market to be among the last to improve, just as it was the first to deteriorate. New home sales fell to a measly 295,000 in August, compared to the more than 1 million found in the pre-recession era.

"There is a massive overhang of existing homes, both through foreclosures and through suppressed sales from homeowners that are 'under water' on their mortgages and can't afford to sell," explains Martin Hutchinson for the source.