Yes, home prices are still falling—just not as fast as before. That’s the news from industry analysts CoreLogic and Lender Processing Services (LPS).
You’ll remember the worst days of the housing decline in 2007-2008, when prices fell at an average annual rate of 13.8 percent. Now, it’s down to 4.4 percent for the year ending last September, according to LPS. And for the entire period since 2008, the average drop has been 3.7 percent.
The Clear Capital Home Data Index™ (HDI) Market Report shows a similar assessment, although the numbers differ. The HDI for November 2011 shows year-over-year price declines at 2.2 percent. Dr. Alex Villacorta, Director of Research and Analytics at Clear Capital is mildly optimistic: "The overall market stability in this month’s report gives me hope that housing markets are settling after a very turbulent two years."
CoreLogic foresees "flat" growth through 2013.
You might say we’re skimming the bottom—but haven’t yet come to rest on it. There’s a good reason why real estate prices won’t drop indefinitely: The population continues to grow, and all those people need places to live. Meanwhile the land available for housing, as you might have noticed, is finite and fixed. Supply and demand: it’s not complicated.
We’re witnessing a historic trough period, but it won’t last forever. Good time to buy? You bet. Just don’t wait too long.
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