Are you experiencing an up or down market?  Our market seems to be more balanced in our  market area.  I have spoke with a few realtors and brokers in the states and this wasn't the case. 

Record drop for U.S. home prices

Sales of existing homes fall for sixth straight month

Wednesday, October 25, 2006

U.S. home prices posted their biggest drop on record in September while sales fell for the sixth month in a row, a real estate group said today.

The U.S. National Association of Realtors said sales of existing homes fell to an annual pace of 6.18 million last month from 6.3 million in August, marking the sixth straight monthly decline in sales.
Economists had forecast a rate of 6.25 million in the most recent period.

The median price of a home sold in September fell 2.2% to US$220,000 from US$225,000 a year ago. It was the biggest year-over-year drop since the record 2.1% decline recorded in November 1990, when the U.S. was in recession.

The group’s August sales report was the first in 11 years to show a year-over-year decline in the price of a typical home.

The median is the point at which half the homes sold cost more and half less.

One bright spot for the housing sector in the report was a decline in the number of homes on the market, which fell 2.4% to 3.75 million in September, giving the market a 7.3 month supply of homes at the current sales pace.

The U.S real estate market and home building have cooled significantly since hitting records in 2005. It is also one of the key causes of a slowdown in the broader economy cited by the Federal Reserve at its last two meetings as part of its decision not to raise interest rates. The central bank’s latest decision on rates and view of the economy is due later today.

Have a good one!

Andrew