A recent data release from the nationally-recognized Case-Shiller Home Price Index indicated that housing may be gaining some upward momentum, with now four consecutive months worth of increases in both the 10- and 20-city composite indices.
Case-Shiller Home Price Index indicates that housing may be gaining some upward momentum.
According to the report, home prices sustained a 0.9 percent increase in July over June, although prices were still down year-over-year in 18 of 20 tracked cities. The 10-city composite showed a year-over-year decline of 3.7 percent, while the 20-city alternative showed a 4.1 percent drop.
Among the locations that fared well in this report were Washington D.C.—which has continued to have a strong real estate market despite turmoil in the rest of the nation—and beleaguered Detroit. Washington showed a 2.4 percent increase from June, and a 0.3 increase from July 2010, while Detroit rose 3.8 percent from June, and was up 1.2 percent from July of last year.
Although prices are down nationally, many major cities (such as Denver, Las Vegas and Phoenix) saw near stagnation of prices. Despite this, Las Vegas’ slight dip did mark a new low for the city, in which prices are now down nearly 60 percent from their 2006 peak. Nationally, prices are now at levels last seen in the summer of 2003, and both composite indices are down nearly one-third from the highs reached in the summer of 2006.
The report’s analysis points to a number of positive factors sustaining the recent improvement in the real estate market, including a drop in mortgage defaults, and a marked pick-up in existing home sales. However, it also suggests that ongoing difficulties in the economy will likely to haunt housing prices for some time.
The Case-Shiller index is released at the end of each month, and tracks national home prices through a 10-city major metropolitan area index, as well as a broader 20-city composite index. It is widely considered to be a barometer for the health of housing. The next release is scheduled for October 25th.
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If we compare rental prices with home buying prices, we can see that we have a lot advantages buying a home!
So prices for homes are going up while mortgages go down. I get the feeling I’m never gonna get on the property ladder…at least not in a decent part of town!
If the price continues to rise like that, I don’t know how much time I’ll have to spend to save enough money for a house.