by Caitlin Kenney

overgrown lawn
xomeo/Planet Money Flickr pool

Overgrown in Los Angeles.

Louise shares this economic indicator:

20 - the percentage of people I work with who have closed on their first home in the past 2 months. Out of a work group of 25 people, five have finalized a home purchase recently. We work in IT for a state agency in Texas, so our jobs are fairly stable right now. The real estate market in Austin has begun perking up after a mini-slump during the past 6 months, and between the low interest rates, lower home prices, and tax incentives, the young professionals I work with have decided that there is no better time to buy than now.