Hedge fund legend John Paulson believes in U.S. economic recovery, and he believes in the housing market.
"I think we're at the tail end of the credit crisis," he said in a recent speech.
"We're in the middle of a sustained recovery in the U.S. The risk of a double dip is less than 10 percent.”
The economy grew 2.7 percent in the first quarter.
As for the housing market, its plunge has created a buying opportunity, Paulson says.
"It's the best time to buy a house in America," he maintains.
"California has been a leading indicator of the housing market, and it turned positive seven months ago. I think we're about to turn a corner."
The latest S&P/Case-Shiller index showed that home prices in 20 U.S. cities rose 3.8 percent in April from a year earlier, the biggest year-over-year gain since September 2006.
Paulson estimated to investors that housing prices will rise up to 10 percent next year, according to The Wall Street Journal.
He has bought vacant residential land in Florida and Southern California, Bloomberg reports.
Not everyone agrees with Paulson about the economy. Ambrose Evans-Pritchard, international business editor of the London Telegraph, for one.
“Let us be honest. The U.S. is still trapped in depression a full 18 months into zero interest rates, quantitative easing and fiscal stimulus that has pushed the budget deficit above 10 percent of GDP,” he wrote in the newspaper.
© 2012 Moneynews. All rights reserved.