Quote:
Record Drop in January Index of Home Prices
April 1, 2009
New York Times
By DAVID STREITFELD
The decline in housing prices maintained its record-breaking descent in January, according to data released Tuesday.
Standard & Poor’s Case-Shiller Home Price Index, a widely watched measure of 20 metropolitan areas, fell 19 percent in January from January 2008. That was slightly faster than it dropped in December.
The worst hit metropolitan areas have now fallen nearly in half. None of the cities showed month-to-month improvements. Thirteen showed record annual rates of decline.
“There’s no daylight that I can see in this report,” said David Blitzer, chairman of the index committee at S.&P.
Phoenix is down 48.5 percent from its June 2006 peak, with Las Vegas not far behind. Dallas was the city with the smallest decline from its peak, 10.8 percent.
The 20-city index fell to 146.40, its lowest point since September 2003. The peak was 206.52 in July 2006.
It may be spring on the calendar, but analysts said it would remain winter on housing prices for a long time.
“We continue to believe that it is unlikely that we are anywhere near a bottom in nationwide home prices,” Joshua Shapiro, chief United States economist for MFR Inc. said in a note. He estimated the index was perhaps two-thirds of the way through its ultimate total decline in this cycle.
The Case-Shiller report comes on the heels of a Census Bureau release that said sales of new one-family homes in February rose 4.7 percent above the revised January rate. The report was received as a hopeful sign for a bottom in home sales.
Some agents have been reporting signs of life in hard-hit markets, feeding a sense of optimism.
“We’re back off the ledge,” said Jim Klinge in San Diego. “Prices have gotten attractive enough, especially with very low interest rates.” He noted, however, that all the sales were on the low end, which in San Diego means less than $500,000.
That activity did not do much for the local price data, however. San Diego’s rate of decline increased in January from the previous month.
Housing prices traditionally lag sales, giving the market time to clear itself.
“If there were a real, absolute, no-questions-asked uptick in sales in January, we might not see clear price movement until August, September or later,” Mr. Blitzer said.
|
How have you responded to this recent drop in home prices?
Is your home losing value too quickly?
Are you finding you're finally able to invest in some extra rental property?
What do you feel is driving this continued downward trend in home prices?
__________________________________________
How have you responded to this recent drop in home prices?
My sister's family was finally able to purchase a home of their own. After scrimping and saving pennies for a year (our parents, too), they've been able to afford a nice little home in the community where we grew up. Home prices have dropped an extreme amount in that suburban community - the home they recently purchased for around $400,000 was worth $800,000 just over a year ago.
Is your home losing value too quickly?
I don't own a home. My parents' home has not lost significant value.
Are you finding you're finally able to invest in some extra rental property?
Ha! That would be nice. Unfortunately on a graduate student stipend I don't stand a chance of investing in any property for the next several years.
What do you feel is driving this continued downward trend in home prices?
I'd love to hear what the TFP has to say about this!