The Washington D.C. area has grown used to positive housing news recently but nationwide, the same has not been true. Last month, however the National Association of Realtors produced a number of positive reports for January, pointing to a broader housing recovery.
Despite a projected dip of 0.8 percent in the demand for existing homes in January, NAR reported a 2.7 percent increase nationally. The Wall Street Journal covered this story adding, “Last year was the worst year since 1997, with about 4.9 million homes sold”. But with the sale of existing homes continuing to rise for the third consecutive month, 2011 is expected to be a much stronger year.
On the foreclosure front, filings have continued, though the month-to-month figures are down. NAR reported just 261,333 new foreclosures in January only slight more than in December. More importantly, cash-rich investors have started surging into the market for these foreclosed properties and are “scooping up foreclosed properties at bargain prices” ReMax wrote in its Monthly Industry Report.
Of course the one piece of data difficult to summarize into a national trend is prices. Housing prices remain entirely dependent on location and in the Washington metropolitan area prices are beginning to rise, and quickly.
Clear Capital spokesman Alex Villacorta was quoted in an article from the Washington Examiner yesterday saying home values are roughly 16 percent above the bottom of the market in mid-2009, when home values were 42 percent off the peak. Local experts credit this rise to the stabilized foreclosure market which is starting to dry up. According to the Examiner, the region’s February foreclosures dropped 65 percent from a year ago and Prince George’s County, which caught the brunt of the region’s foreclosure crisis, saw filings decrease by 75 percent. These key points are forcing real estate prices in the Washington, DC area higher. Already, home prices in the area have risen 13.2 percent since 2010.
If you were waiting to purchase a new home until the housing market hits bottom, I hate to tell you, that day has passed. Don’t wait for prices to climb even higher. Stop by one of Mid-Atlantic Builders’ communities of new homes in southern Maryland. Visit us at Beechtree in Upper Marlboro, Woodmore North in Mitchellville or our new Villages of Savannah in Brandywine.
