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Are Home Prices Going Up In The Washington DC Area? Has Housing Finally Bottomed Out?

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December 01, 2011 08:06 AM

Are Home Prices Going Up In The Washington DC Area? Has Housing Finally Bottomed Out?

The Standard & Poors/Case Shiller Index is a monthly report that measures the change in prices of a group of homes in 20 major metropolitan areas in the US. The most recent index for September was released on November 29, 2011.

Seventeen metropolitan areas reported price declines since August, excluding the New York, Portland and Washington, D.C. areas. In the New York and Portland areas, prices edged up 0.1 percent. Prices rose 1.2 percent in the Washington, D.C., area. “Detroit and Washington DC posted positive annual rates of change and also saw an improvement in these rates compared to August" says David M. Blitzer, Chairman of the Index Committee at S&P Indices.

In a speech Tuesday at the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco, Federal Reserve Vice Chair Janet L. Yellen called for more housing stimulus. "A sharp downturn in housing was at the core of the previous recession, and this sector continues to weigh on the recovery," she said. "I see a strong case for additional policies to foster more rapid recovery in the housing sector." There has been speculation that this could partially come in the form of lower mortgage interest rates with the Federal Reserve purchasing mortgage backed securities.

Jim Cramer, a co-founder of TheStreet and contributes daily market commentary to the financial news network's sites, asked "Has Housing Finally Bottomed?" concludes "In other words, it could at last be happening -- and not a moment too soon."

So, are housing prices finally starting to bottom out? If your in the Washington, DC metropolitan area the anwser appears to be yes.

At least in the Washington DC area we appear to have the "Perfect Storm" in real estate with a combination of low housing prices and low interest rates. Are you thinking about purchasing a new home? Act now before the storm subsides!

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Alan Gross