Tag Archives: Home Prices

Home prices continued to inch up in November, according to Lender Processing Services' (LPS) Home Price Index (HPI) for the month. LPS' data showed home prices increased to an average $207,000 in November, an increase of 0.5 percent from $206,000 in October. On a year-over-year basis, prices were up 5.1 percent from November 2011's $197,000. Florida topped the list of states to see the largest price gains in November, posting a 1.5 percent month-over-month improvement.

The Pending Home Sales Index (PHSI) fell 4.3 percent to 101.7 in December, the sharpest month-month drop since April the National Association of Realtors (NAR) reported Monday. Economists had expected a smaller 0.3 percent decrease to 106.1 from November's originally reported 106.4. The November index was revised down to 106.3. NAR economist Lawrence Yun blamed a tight inventory for the weakening index. Yun also noted the lack of homes costing less than $100,000, especially in the West.

Two housing reports in the week just demonstrated, yet again, economists are not infallible. On Tuesday, the National Association of Realtors (NAR) reported existing home sales for December: 4.94 million against a consensus forecast of 5.1 million. Then on Friday, the Census Bureau and HUD reported jointly 369,000 new homes were sold in December compared with a consensus forecast of 388,000. There are several important housing related reports due out next week, but they will take a backseat to the report on fourth quarter GDP and Friday's report on the employment situation.

Winter weather did not slow down the housing market's momentum, with homebuyer traffic still going strong in December, according to survey results from Campbell/Inside Mortgage Finance HousingPulse Tracking Survey. The three homebuyer groups--current homeowners, first-time homebuyers and investors--all recorded their biggest traffic gains of 2012 in December, data from the HousingPulse survey revealed. The survey also measured the relative health of the housing market by assessing time on market, number of offers, closed transactions, and sales prices. Overall, survey data revealed all measures improved at the end of 2012.

New home sales fell 7.3 percent in December to an annual pace of 369,000, the sharpest monthly drop in almost two years, the Census Bureau and Department of Housing and Urban Development reported Friday. Economists surveyed by Bloomberg expected the report to show a sales rose to 388,000. The monthly drop in sales was the largest since February 2011, when sales fell 11.4 percent. Nonetheless, December 2012 sales were up 8.8 percent over December 2011.

Pro Teck's ranking measures inventory, days on market, sales and listing activity, the ratio of sales price to list price, and foreclosures and REOs to determine the best- and worst-performing markets in the nation. January's top 10 list includes a mix of markets from all regions across the country, and ""even those in the Bottom 10 list are showing a fair percentage of positive trends,"" said Michael Sklarz, principal of collateral analytics at Pro Teck. Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, Texas ranked as the No. 1 market in the country and was one of two Texas markets to make the top 10 list this month.

While some are asking when the economy will return to normal, others are wondering if this prolonged period of below-potential GDP growth is actually the ""new normal,"" according to a report from Fannie Mae's (FNMA/OTC) Economic & Strategic Research Group. For 2013 and 2014, Fannie Mae projects a continuation of below-potential economic growth, with a 2 percent growth rate expected for 2013, similar to the lackluster performance seen in 2012.

The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) reported another increase in home prices for November. On a seasonally adjusted basis, prices increased 0.6 percent from October to November and by 5.6 percent over the 12-month period ending in November, according to FHFA's calculations. FHFA has not reported a decline in monthly home prices since January 2012. The current index is 15.2 percent lower than the national peak reached in April 2007.

Home prices may appear to be in recovery mode, but they haven't reached bottom yet and probably won't until sometime in 2014, according to a report from DBRS. Although the rating agency acknowledged positive housing trends in 2012, such as signs of recovery for home prices, decreasing delinquencies, and more prime jumbo securitizations, DBRS still stated it ""believes that the housing market will remain under pressure in the foreseeable future.""

As the National Association of Realtors reported, home sales dropped in December. However, Capital Economics warns this should be no cause for despair. ""[M]onthly changes are volatile,"" the analytics firm stated Tuesday, adding that three-month averages are often more indicative of market trends and the numbers from a single month. Based on the three-month average, existing-home sales are still on the rise.