The pace of home building surged to a four-year high, according to a government report issued Wednesday. Builders started work at an annual pace of 872,000 homes last month, up 15% from the pace in August. They also filed for permits to build homes at an annual rate of 894,000, up 11.6% from the previous month. Both indicators are the best since the summer of 2008, before the collapse in financial markets that caused home lending and building to freeze up.

With mortgage rates near record lows and the Federal Reserve's decision to buy $40 billion in mortgages every month, rates are likely to stay low for the foreseeable future. The low mortgage rates, coupled with affordable housing prices and a drop in unemployment have helped to restart home sales.