The U.S. Department of Commerce reported sales of new homes were up 11 percent in June — the largest jump in more than eight years and well above the rise of 2.3 percent expected by analysts.

Resales of existing homes were up 3.6 percent in June, the third straight monthly increase.

“The evidence is clear that home buyers are taking advantage of Recovery Act tax incentives, declines in home prices and relatively low mortgage rates,” U.S. Under Secretary for Economic Affairs Rebecca Blank said.

“While the economic environment remains difficult, as more Recovery Act dollars hit the streets, we anticipate that it will further bolster the economy in the coming months.”

While last Friday's boost in the federal minimum wage to $7.25 an hour will help working Americans on the lower end of the pay scale, it still doesn't allow those people to afford decent housing.

According to the National Low-Income Housing Coalition's annual "Out of Reach" report, a household must earn $17.84 an hour to afford the national average two-bedroom "fair market rent" (FMR) of $928 a month.

According to the Coalition, "In no county in the U.S. can a full-time minimum wage worker afford even a one-bedroom apartment at the FMR."

With a minimum wage of $8.06 an hour, Vermont is one of 14 states with a minimum higher than the national.

Still, the gap for Vermonters between the minimum wage and fair market rent is substantial.

In an opinion piece that appeared recently in the Rutland Herald, Vermont Land Trust Executive Director Gil Livingston and Rutland County Community Land Trust Executive Director Elisabeth Kulas thanked legislators for funding the Vermont Housing & Conservation Board.

"Vermont legislators wisely determined that while difficult economic times require serious belt-tightening, our strategic investments in safe, decent affordable housing and our working farms and forests must continue," the two wrote.

Read the full article online.

Yesterday the U.S. House Committee on Financial Services approved the Section 8 Voucher Reform Act of 2009 (H.R. 3045).

The bill would establish a stable, fair and cost-effective funding system for the Section 8 program and ensure no tenant is ever at risk of losing housing assistance because of unexpected budget shortfalls.

The bill would also restore previous assistance levels by authorizing 150,000 new vouchers.

The Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher Program provides rental housing assistance to 2 million low-income families nationwide.

Read more about H.R. 3045 at the House site.