DESPITE OCCASIONAL numbers and wishful thinking that lead us to hope we are on the far side of the worst housing crash since the Great Depression, that appears to not yet be the case.
Apparently, surviving this crash is going to take yet more patience, much patience. And perhaps even a bit more creative thinking.
The bottom line? According to numbers released this past week by Standard and Poors, home prices fell 3.5 percent in February compared to last February.
In another report, sales of new single family homes dropped in March to the lowest level in four months. The reports are summarized in an article on MSN.
"The housing market is still really very low, Maureeen Maitland, a Standard and Poor's vice president was quoted as saying. "Housing starts, home sales, our numbers are at cycle lows. They're really not showing any turn around at all."
None? Nada? Zilch?
Nope. And according to Robert Shiller, a Yale economics professor who co-created the index, that may not change anytime soon. Heck, according to Shiller, it might not even change for quite some time.
"I worry that we might not see a really major turnaround in out lifetimes," MSN quoted Shiller as saying. The reasons, Shiller added, were a weak labor market, high gasoline prices and a general sense of unease among consumers.
In all, sales slipped in March to a seasonably adjusted annual rate of 328,000 units.
All of that said, there does seem to be some areas that are showing signs of improvement. I write that because I spend much of my days speaking with agents across the country and I am hearing more often these days how some of them are getting busier than they have been in years. The problem is that it appears those agents are the exception rather than the rule.
At least, that is what Maitland believes. "There are very few markets that are seeing positive annual rates of change ... so I wouldn't say there are very many bright spots."
How about you and your market? Are you busier than a year ago? Does it appear that your local market has turned the corner? Hmm?
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