Home Prices in 20 U.S. Cities Increase by Most Since 2006

The article, Home Prices in 20 U.S. Cities Increase by Most Since 2006, from www.bloomberg.com, reports that home prices in 20 U.S. cities rose in the 12 months to December by the most in more than six years, a sign the housing-market recovery is strengthening. The S&P/Case-Shiller index of property values increased 6.8 percent from December 2011, the biggest year-to-year gain since July 2006. “The key here is it’s not as if we’re getting all the juice from one area, it’s broadly based across the country,” said Brian Jones, a senior U.S. economist at Societe Generale in New York, who correctly projected the year-over-year increase. “Rates are low, prices are attractive, so affordability is high, and the labor market is gradually healing as well. If you were in the market to buy a home, right now it’s a good time." Home prices adjusted for seasonal variations in the 20-city index climbed 0.9 percent in December from the prior month, compared with a 0.7 gain in November. The month-over-month gain was led by Las Vegas and Los Angeles. All 20 cities showed increases. Phoenix led the group of 19 cities that showed year-over- year increases, with a 23 percent jump in the 12 months to December. San Francisco was second with a 14.4 percent gain.

Here is the link to the entire article: http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-02-26/home-prices-in-20-u-s-cities-increase-by-most-since-2006.html

Confidence Index for February 2013

Subscriber Confidence Index for February 2013 Every month ARMLS® surveys a representative sample of Subscribers who have closed a minimum of one transaction in the previous 12 months. They are questioned about their feelings on current and future real estate, business and employment conditions in the Valley and their expectation of their family income in six months. Subscriber responses are tabulated and converted into the ARMLS Subscriber Confidence Index (SCI), plus the Present and the Expectation Indices. February’s SCI is 87.5%, the Present Confidence is 87.1% and the Expectation Confidence is 87.7%. Learn more about how the February SCI compares with January. Watch for the SCI every month on the Home page of armls.com.

LATEST PHOENIX REAL ESTATE STATISTICS

STAT is the ARMLS^® newsletter that gives Subscribers the most current market statistics.

In this issue read about an increase in the median sales price, further decline in foreclosures pending, a rise in total inventory, plus a new graph which looks at the UCB (formerly AWC) makeup within Active inventory.

Click to access the December issue of STAT and the ARMLS PPI™.

Back issues of STAT and ARMLS PPI™ are always available on the ARMLS website at: http://www.armls.com/statistics/stat-library

Phoenix-area homebuyers squeezed out by investors

Phoenix-area homebuyers squeezed out by investors

Phoenix Ranks 4th in Single Family Price up in 4th Qtr 2011

Prices in Phoenix-Mesa-Scottsdale were up by 4.49% in 4th quarter of 2011.

Details in the Lowes website at

http://lowes.inman.com/newsletter/2012/02/13/news/177435

Search AZ MLS with the same software Realtors use!

Search AZ MLS with the same software Realtors use!

LIVE MLS SEARCH:
http://idx.dmarq.info/

Real Estate Outlook

Realty Times of January 12, 2010

Real Estate Outlook: The Numbers Are In by Kenneth R. Harney


The drop in the latest pending home sales index got a lot of press attention, but that blip downward shouldn't be your guide on what to expect for real estate in 2010.

The 16 percent decline in November pending sales from October's unusually high index was due almost entirely to buyers' behavior confronting what they thought was an expiring tax credit.

In October the pending sales index went off the charts. Buyers were scrambling to sign contracts before the $8,000 credit program expired at the end of the month.

In November, buyer behavior was just the opposite. When Congress extended the credit through next April 30, the pressure was off. Nobody needed to rush to sign contracts.

Not surprisingly, the November index hit the skids.

Meanwhile, even November's pending sales number was a solid 16 percent above November 2008. That suggests that even without the extra incentive provided by the credit, the home sale market is gaining strength for its own fundamental reasons: huge pent-up demand, low prices and great financing.

But keep this in mind: Those fundamentals are dynamic - and buyers and sellers need to stay on top of them as they change in the weeks ahead.

For example, as we've noted before here at Realty Times, with the economy climbing slowly out of recession, and the Federal Reserve expected to throttle back on its mortgage securities purchases , interest rates are now trending upwards.

Last week's thirty year average fixed rate for new mortgages hit 5.2 percent, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association. That's still very low by historical standards, but it's up nearly a quarter of a percentage point just since mid December.

Fifteen year fixed rates averaged 4.6 percent -- a rise of one third of a point in the past few weeks.

Home prices are also beginning to trend upward in key markets, according to the latest Case-Shiller home price index. In San Francisco and Minneapolis, the index is up by about 15 percent since the low point earlier in 2009, according to an analysis by Bespoke Investment Group.

The same analysis found the Case-Shiller index up 8.3 percent from last year's low point to the latest month in metropolitan Washington DC, 7.6 percent in San Diego, 7.2 percent in Denver, 6.9 percent in Chicago and Phoenix, 6.8 percent in Dallas and 6.1 percent in Boston.

With reports of fewer layoffs plus significant new gains in manufacturing outplut and retail sales don't be surprised to see prices-and mortgage rates -- continue to rise in the months ahead.

Copyright © 2010 Realty Times. All Rights Reserved.

NEWS OF NOTE

Items gathered from several places:

The median home price in the Phoenix area reportedly rose for the first time in 2 years. The median price was over $120,000. No doubt the 1st Time Homebuyer program has something to do with that. The inventory of homes in the $100,000 price range in nearly non-exsistant in even Maricopa and Johnson ranch, and even the next range step up to $150,000 is small at best. Most remaining in that market are short-sales which have less appeal to most buyers today.

There were over 8,000 sales in the Phoenix market in August, offset somewhat by 12,000 new listings. The Foreclosure Pipeline is approaching 50,000, but one hopes a large percentage of those will be resolved by loan modifications. You may have read about the judge that brought a Senior VP from a major bank to Phoenix for 2 days of grilling on why modifications are only in the 2 to 3% range? Workload seems to have been the answer - when new loans stopped, people were laid off. How about we hire some back?

Related issue, credit cards.

Some rules that just kicked in the Credit Card industry mean that:

-Card issuers must mail credit card bills at least 21 days before their due dates. That's up from 14 days. Issuers were"banking" on the fact that consumers would make a payment late and incur a $35 late fee.

-Card issuers must give you the option to avoid future interest rate increases and pay off any outstanding balance under your current rate. If you take this option, you won't be able to make additional charges on that card, and you must pay off the balance within five years the bank can cancel the card and make you pay it off under your old terms, but with a higher minimum payment, according to Consumers Union. "Your new payment could be double your old minimum payment, or higher, if needed, to pay off the card in five years."

-Card issuers must give you at least 45 days' notice before making major changes in terms, such as changing your interest rate or the fees they charge. That's up from 15 days. Other card changes that require at least 45 days' notice include an increase in your minimum payment and switching your fixed rate to a variable rate.

After seeing their housing and personal wealth hammered by the recession, U.S. consumers are saving more and paring down their debts, a trend that the new law could reinforce.

For the three months that ended June 30, U.S. households on average carried a credit card balance of $7,987, down from a high of $8,529 in the third quarter of last year, according to Moody's Economy.com.

For Information on getting a new credit card if you're current terms are undesirable visit Bankrate.com

Oh, by the way, the Feds announced today that savings in the U.S. rose by 3%. Why is my head spinning?

Hang in there!

Real Estate Outlook

From Realty Times of July 7, 2009

Real Estate Outlook: Gains Versus Gloom by Kenneth R. Harney

(Note Phoenix comments!)

When even the Case-Shiller index, which ranks as the gloomiest of all the measures of house price movements, starts reporting gains then you know something is stirring out there in real estate.

In its latest monthly survey, Standard & Poor's Case-Shiller index found prices up in a number of key markets: Dallas prices gained 1.7 percent, Denver 1.5 percent and other cities -- Washington DC, Seattle, San Francisco, Atlanta, Boston and Cleveland -- registered smaller increases.

Nationally, the Case-Shiller index came in slightly negative for the month overall, as did the Federal Housing Finance Agency's home purchase price index.

But even the most bearish researchers now agree: Prices are bottoming out, even in some of the hardest-hit areas.

Home sales are also up in many local markets, sometimes dramatically so. Take metropolitan Phoenix. According to the latest MDA DataQuick survey, sales in the Phoenix market grew at their fastest pace in two years during May.

Resales of detached houses were up by 56 percent over year ago levels, and condo sales were up by 30 percent.

Even prices in the Phoenix area, a market still weighed down by a high percentage of distressed sales and foreclosures, gained by 3.5 percent in May over April levels.

That's an important turnaround, but the sobering fact is that even with that gain, prices in Phoenix are still down 38 percent compared with the same period in 2008.

Other important developments this week pointing to improvements in the housing sector:


Mortgage rates continue to drop, and are now approaching the lows we saw a few months back. According to the Mortgage Bankers Association, average 30 year fixed rates hit 5.3 percent last week-the third straight weekly decline. Fifteen year fixed rates already have pushed below the 5 percent mark - and averaged just 4.8 percent last week.

Consumer sentiment, as measured by the University of Michigan's survey, was up slightly again, with more consumers indicating confidence in making “big ticket” purchases, which of course include houses.
Now none of this is to suggest that real estate is in great shape and happy days are here again.

That's not the case -- not with hundreds of thousands of workers losing their jobs every month and the national unemployment rate projected to approach 10 percent. And not with lenders continuing to impose tough credit and underwriting standards on all home purchase mortgage applications.

But after so many months of negative news, we think it's important to acknowledge the positive signs popping up on home sales, pricing and interest rates - even if we still have a long way to go to full recovery.


Copyright © 2009 Realty Times. All Rights Reserved.