Economic and housing market growth was slow in the first quarter but both are expected to pick up as the year goes on. In fact, according to Fannie Mae’s Economic & Strategic Research Group, that expected pick up should begin this quarter and carry through the rest of the year. Doug Duncan, Fannie Mae’s chief economist, said the agency has downgraded their housing forecast slightly but the recent loss of momentum is a temporary one. Duncan believes housing will contribute to economic growth this year, with both new home sales and new residential construction experiencing increases over last year’s totals. Existing-home sales, on the other hand, have been relatively flat, due in part to the fact that there are fewer distressed properties being sold to real-estate investors this year as compared to the year before. Despite a slower-than-expected first quarter, however, Fannie Mae is still predicting a slight increase in overall economic growth in 2014 over last year’s pace. More here.