Revival of the US housing market is a vital cog that would help fuel a recovery in the overall economy, yet the topic was consistently absent from this week's debate between Republican Presidential candidates.  Despite the debate taking place in Las Vegas, in one of the states hardest hit by the foreclosure epidemic, there was no ideas exchanged about how the potential candidates would tackle the pressing problems plaguing real estate.

The absence of ideas to spur housing growth is not limited to Republicans, however, as the Obama administration has not put forth any concrete programs to boost the market, a fact that economists say is impeding an overall economic recovery.  In a healthy economy, housing accounts for an estimated 17 percent of total US economic output.  According to industry insiders, the construction of 100 single-family homes creates just over 300 full-time jobs and generates over $23 million in wages and nearly $9 million in tax revenue.

A handful of markets around the nation have actually begun showing signs of improvement, but there are still an estimated 1.4 million residential construction workers that have been without jobs since 2006.  Economists say that new policies are needed to get those workers back on the job, which would bring more buyers into the market, and further strengthen the economic recovery that is underway, albeit at a much slower pace than Americans would like.

One issue plaguing a housing recovery is extremely tight lending standards adopted by the nation's banks following the mortgage-backed securities fiasco.  These strict criteria, in addition to keeping many potential homebuyers unable to secure a home loan, are also preventing smaller builders from securing financing to start construction projects, which would create jobs and generate tax revenue for their communities.