ShareThe Home Price Monitor Series reviews national home prices by examining several widely cited national measurements. It is released monthly and allows REALTORS® to gain insight into the recent performance of national prices, factors affecting that performance, and the likely direction of prices in the months ahead. The Home Price Monitor includes the same data covered in the national media that clients will expect their REALTORS® to know and be able to comment on and provides different, more complete coverage of the information all in one place.
Highlights
- Lackluster year over year home price performance continued in March and April though monthly performance was better. Series for which we have April data showed improvement—smaller declines in the year.
- Housing market activity is seasonal, so year over year comparisons are typically the most informative. However, the expiration of the tax credit one year ago makes year over year comparisons less informative than usual this period.
- NAR and Census data continue to show that new homes have better price performance; low levels of new construction and very little activity in the new home sector should help maintain this trend.
- Distressed sales, which hold back existing home prices, trended down in April for the first time since November to around a quarter of all sales. The distressed-excluded price series is much more stable.
Outlook
- Data from the REALTORS® Confidence Index show that the share of distressed sales peaked in the first quarter of 2009 and 2010.
- April data suggests that the pattern may also hold in 2011. This would mean that price performance is likely to improve in the months ahead. Stable inventories coupled with the seasonal boost in sales activity will also help support prices.
- While higher shares of distressed sales hold back prices, they clear shadow inventory more quickly. Substantial variation in distressed sales by state will affect performance in your market. See NAR's State by State estimate of Shadow Inventory for insight into your area.
- Affordability remains high, but job growth, confidence, and available financing are necessary for consumers to take advantage. Tight credit may currently hold some potential buyers back.