This year has brought sustained turnaround in a variety of areas and market segments. It's why many in the housing industry are optimistic about 2013. Attractive mortgage rates, affordable inventory and a healing jobs picture give reason to believe that year-over-year improvements will continue into and after the traditional holiday slowdown.

In the Twin Cities region, for the week ending December 1:

• New Listings increased 0.7% to 1,019

• Pending Sales increased 18.6% to 977

• Inventory decreased 29.0% to 14,260

For the month of November:

• Median Sales Price increased 16.9% to $173,000

• Days on Market decreased 25.9% to 103

• Percent of Original List Price Received increased 3.7% to 94.3%

• Months Supply of Inventory decreased 40.6% to 3.4

This November, there was a lot to be thankful for. Home buyers were thankful for historically low mortgage rates and still-affordable prices. Sellers were thankful for increased sales, less competition and faster market times. Both parties can be thankful for the slow yet steady economic recovery.

Challenges persist, to be sure, going into 2013, but there's more reason for optimism than pessimism. Here's the local scoop. New Listings in the Twin Cities region increased 0.2 percent to 4,119. Pending Sales were up 12.6 percent to 3,587. Inventory levels shrank 29.4 percent to 13,860 units.

Prices moved higher. The Median Sales Price increased 16.9 percent to $173,000. Days on Market was down 25.9 percent to 103 days. Absorption rates improved as Months Supply of Inventory was down 40.6 percent to 3.4 months.

There are three primary avenues to housing recovery: better market fundamentals, improved market composition and more jobs. Many communities are enjoying better fundamentals, such as higher demand and less supply. But many areas are also experiencing a lower overall share of distressed sales activity. In the month ahead, continue to watch hiring and unemployment trends.