Real Estate Market Improves and Prices Rising
The Standard & Poor’s Case-Shiller index of 20 major cities showed prices rising in 19 of the 20 cities for the 12-month period. Prices fell only in New York — by 1.2%.Compared with October, the index showed a 0.1% decline.“Housing is clearly recovering,” said David Blitzer, chairman of the home price index committee.The November numbers were stronger than October with 10 cities posting gains month to month. Only seven cities showed monthly gains in October’s Case-Shiller report. Declines in 10 cities are not unexpected for November because of winter weather and normal seasonal slowdowns in housing markets.Case-Shiller’s data shows the Southwest — represented by Phoenix and Las Vegas — have the strongest home price gains while Southeastern cities Miami and Tampa are close behind. Year over year, Phoenix prices are up almost 23%. The Charleston SC market was less effected as compared to much of the U.S., and regularly stood as one of the more resilient markets. Even throughout the housing crash.Other home price data also show increases for last year that came in higher than most economists expected.Some other factors also boosted home prices.In December, the nation’s supply of homes for sale fell to a 4.4 months, based on that month’s sales pace. That was the lowest level since May 2005, the National Association of Realtors says.The supply situation, which has been tightening for six months, has led to multiple bids for houses in some markets.“Any new listings are getting eaten up right away,” says EJ Bowlds, managing broker for Coldwell Banker Bain in Mercer Island, Wash. Multiple offers of 6 to 10 per home are now common, he says. Local home builder in Mount Pleasant, SC says there has also been a large jump in interest for building new homes because of the declining inventory.A slowly improving economy and low interest rates, which ticked up slightly to 3.42% the week ended Jan. 24, are also fueling demand.Prices are expected to keep moving higher this year, many economists and market watchers say.Prices will rise an average of 3.1% in 2013, according to the most recent survey of more than 100 economists and real estate experts surveyed by market watcher Zillow.“We have probably hit bottom and we’ve probably come off the bottom a little,” says Lawrence White, economist at New York University Leonard N. Stern School of Business.
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