Hot off the press
IS THE MARKET RECOVERING?
Now that the homebuyer tax credit is drawing to a close, the statistics are starting to come out.
It appears that home prices actually increased — albeit slightly — in Feb. 2010.
According to the S&P/Case-Shiller 20-city index, the modest 0.6 percent increase over Feb. 2009 is the first
upward movement since Dec. 2006.
"The homebuyer tax credit ... is the likely cause for these encouraging numbers," said David
Blitzer, chairman of the S&P index committee.
Buyers rushing into the market to get their home purchases in before the April 30 deadline apparently helped boost
the housing markets enough to account for this long-awaited increase.
However, it may be too soon to call this the beginning of the end of undervalued homes. Experts caution we may not
be out of the woods yet.
Home prices still fell by 0.9 percent from Jan. to Feb. of this year. Eighteen of the index's 20 cities
experienced price declines and six cities — including New York, Las Vegas and Seattle — have hit
record lows.
"This data points to a risk that home prices could decline further before experiencing any sustained gains," said
Blitzer. "It is too early to say that the housing market is recovering."
February prices were so low that they roughly matched the housing prices during the autumn of 2003.
For investors with properties they're waiting to resell, this new statistic could be a promising turnaround.
Investors who are still waiting to buy may be wondering if this is the end of rock-bottom home prices.
It is expected that, as the final numbers around the tax credit roll in, we'll start to understand more of its
impact as well as what's coming down the pike next.
In the meantime, all investors would do well to stay on top of market changes within their areas of interest and
involve an agent who has expertise in distressed properties to solicit help and advice.
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