Home Prices Increase in 22 Metro Areas

The 2.1 percent average rise in home prices in 22 out of 25 metropolitan statistical areas (MSAs) from April to May suggests that recovery could be at hand in many areas, says Radar Logic, a real estate data and analytics company.

"This is in stark contrast to the same period during 2008, when a decrease in the velocity of home price depreciation gave way to the worst loss in housing value in recent history," the report says.

The report calculates that in the key MSAs it studies, prices have fallen 33.5 percent peak-to-trough and 31 percent peak-to-current.

Here are the 10 metropolitan areas where prices increased the most from April to May of this year:

1. Milwaukee, Wis., 4.9 percent
2. Charlotte, 4.7 percent
3. Boston, 4.6 percent
4. Cleveland, 4 percent
5. Washington, DC, 3.7 percent
6. St. Louis, 3.3 percent
7. Columbus, Ohio, 3.2 percent
8. Seattle, 2.8 percent
9. Denver, 2.3 percent
10. Philadelphia, 1.8 percent

Source: Radar Logic (07/23/2009)

California Home Prices Rise in June

California’s median home prices rose 7 percent in June compared to May, according to MDA DataQuick, a real estate research firm. The statewide median price increased to $246,000 from $230,000, triggered by an increase in sales of higher-priced homes.

"We're just now seeing the beginnings of more normal mortgage lending patterns," DataQuick President John Walsh says. "There's still a long way to go, but it looks like the worst of the grind is over."

DataQuick also pointed out that foreclosures accounted for 46 percent of sales, the first month since August 2008 that foreclosure sales were less than 50 percent of the total.

Source: The Associated Press, Jacob Adelman (07/16/2009)

New Home Construction Increasing

Despite high unemployment and general concerns of too much existing inventory, new-home construction appears to be rising.

According to Friday’s report from the U.S. Commerce Department, construction of new homes rose 3.6 percent in June compared to May. Building permits climbed 8.7 percent, and single-family home starts jumped 14.4 percent to 470,000, after rising 5.9 percent in May.

In real numbers, ground was broken for an estimated 58,300 houses nationwide in June, and an estimated 58,400 building permits were issued.

Here’s a look at housing starts in different U.S. regions:

Midwest: up 33.3 percent
Northeast: up 28.6 percent
South: down 1.4 percent
West: down 14.8 percent

Source: The Wall Street Journal, Jeff Bater (06/17/2009)

Money Magazine's Best Places to Live

Money Magazine released its popular best-places-to-live list with the August 2009 issue. This year’s roundup has a few new twists.

On its Web site, the magazine allows users to find the best place to live near their current locations. It also introduces some subcategories, including 25 best places for affordable homes, towns where there are the most jobs, towns with quick commutes, 25 best places for singles, best places for pricey homes, 25 towns where the residents are young, and places with the cleanest air.

Here are its top 10 selections for the best overall places to live—all of them small towns with strong local economies, good schools, affordable homes, and low crime rates:

1. Louisville, Colo.
2. Chanhassen, Minn.
3. Papillion, Neb.
4. Middleton, Wisc.
5. Milton, Mass.
6. Warren, N.J.
7. Keller, Texas
8. Peachtree City, Ga.
9. Lake St. Louis, Mo.
10. Mukilteo, Wash.

Source: Money (August 2009)

Top 10 Cities With The Greatest Price Reductions

Real estate research site Trulia.com says 24.6 percent of current homes on the market in the United States as of July 1, have had at least one price cut, totaling $27.1 billion in reductions.

The average price-reduced home has had a 10.4 percent reduction, down slightly from 10.6 percent as of June 1.

Some areas appear to be stabilizing quickly with the overall number and percentage of price reductions declining, including Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Dallas, Washington, D.C., and Baltimore.

“All real estate is local and we’re seeing glimmers of hope as price stabilization occurs in major cities across the nation, including some of the earliest hit cities that have experienced huge declines in the past few years,” says Trulia CEO Pete Flint.

The top-10 cities with the most price reductions as of July 1 are:

1. Jacksonville, Fla., 39 percent
2. Boston, 35 percent
3. Minneapolis, 33 percent
4. Milwaukee, 33 percent
5. Honolulu, 33 percent
6. Tucson, Ariz., 31 percent
7. Chicago, 31 percent
8. New York, 31 percent
9. Austin, Texas, 31 percent
10. Raleigh, N.C., 31 percent

Source: Trulia.com (07/10/2009)

Market Activity

After four separate offers for our NE Bellevue listing near Microsoft we have finally gone Pending. The market has definitely picked up in the conforming loan price range and when properties are priced correctly they will still sell fast. We were fortunate to receive our first offer on day one and the positive activity continued from then until now, almost 30 days later.

In this case, pricing the property correctly meant under-cutting an almost identical house located only two blocks away by a mere $15,000... just enough to excite several buyers into making offers. Overall, a fantastic start to our new attorney short sale program!

For more information about properly pricing your property or about our attorney short sale system please contact Shawn Filer today at 206-919-5388 or shawn@shawnfiler.com