Stocks climbed a bit on Monday and I don’t think that was a shock for most people. We knew that the change in the prime rate was going to impact the financial world across the board and that change did not disappoint. Adding another quarter point to the recent ‘emergency’ rate cut only a few weeks ago dropped the prime rate a full point in total and that rate ripples throughout the marketplace.

The housing industry is still not seeing any major changes, but with time, perhaps we will see stabilization and eventually a climb there as well. The interest rates dropping will eventually affect homebuyers in a positive way, after all. Does that mean that consumers are starting to have a more hopeful outlook?

From everything I can see, it really doesn’t look that way. Now that congress has passed the economic stimulus bill that included the so called “tax rebate” Americans can look forward to an early return on next years taxes. Come May married couples will be getting a check for $1200. Will that really make a big difference in the long term or is it just throwing money down the drain? Most folks I have talked to are planning on paying down bills, rather than spending on new items, so that really isn’t driving the economic engines.

The financial pundits are still uncertain about the eventual outcome and are unwilling to make predictions. President Bush has on the rose colored glasses and sees a sunny future, but I think we all know that his opinion isn’t going to hold much sway over the market.

The value of stocks right now are making them very appealing, and of course, using the dollar cost averaging method of investing, we know that right now is the time to invest. The most value for your dollar awaits you, so dive in and enjoy the potential gains that are in our futures.