Home prices dropped once again in major metropolitan areas nationwide. The Standard & Poor's/Case-Shiller index, which is often cited as the most reliable indicator of home price trends nationwide, recently released the numbers for the months of September and October 2010. Home prices dropped an additional 1.3% between the two months across all 20 tracking regions, making six regions of the country hit new lows.
The numbers reflect the sale of single-family homes and track all major metropolitan areas in the nation. Home prices in cities such as Atlanta, Charlotte, Miami, Tampa and Portland, Oregon dropped to their lowest levels since the housing market began to crumble in late 2006 and 2007. This is particularly alarming because some of these regions have not been severely hurt in past months' reports. Atlanta also saw one of the steepest price drops - a total of 2.9% - along with Detroit (2.5%) and Chicago (2%). Boston experienced a lesser drop, with only a 1.2% decrease in price.
All of this is bad news for the housing market nationwide as we enter another new year without any significant real estate recovery. Last year's numbers were even grimmer, so maybe we have at least seen the bottom of this trend. Several regions also showed year-over-year price gains, including some significant increases in Washington (3.7%) and notoriously difficult real estate markets such as California - with Los Angeles at a 3.3% increase followed by San Diego at 3% and San Francisco at 2.2%.
The index reflects a three-month average, so prices do include sales that took place in August and September as well, when the federal purchase incentives were still in effect. Economists typically recommend looking at seasonally-adjusted data when it comes to the housing market because overall sales tend to decline in the winter. Once corrected for seasonal slowdown, data can properly reflect trends across the board. Case-Shiller recommends looking at non-seasonally-adjusted numbers, however, as they can be skewed by foreclosure data. Foreclosures, which do not have a seasonal pattern unlike regular home sales at least, can make the market look stronger than it actually is, Case-Shiller officials argue.
Overall, the recent findings do not provide much hope in an economy that many argue will not recover until the housing market regains strength. Though this still presumes interest rates are at an all time low, and for this who haven't, they should be looking to buy before that changes.
Here at P&P, we strongly recommend consulting an experience real estate attorney when looking to buy or sell a home. With the housing market still struggling to regain strength, it is important not to go it alone when obtaining, financing and distinguishing between strong and weak buyers is something good real estate attorneys should do. Our staff will provide constant attention as your transaction proceeds from start to finish, and we will examine every detail of your contracts to ensure everything possible is done to give your transaction the chance of consummation. As trained title insurance agents, we examine the title and address any issues that might arise, especially with many of the foreclosed properties that contain many title issues. Contact our office today to schedule your free consultation and ensure the smoothest transaction possible.
