May 9, 2012
Home prices slid slightly in March
Consumers nationwide have been enjoying relatively low home prices for some time now, and that continued into March.
On a year-over-year basis, average home prices nationwide, including distressed properties, fell by 0.6 percent in March, and increased by the same proportion from the previous month, according to the latest Home Price Index from CoreLogic. This was the first month-over-month increase seen since July 2011.
However, when distressed properties were excluded from the study, home prices rose from one month to the next for the third consecutive study, the report said.
"This spring the housing market is responding to an improving balance between real estate supply and demand which is causing stabilization in house prices," said Mark Fleming, chief economist for CoreLogic. "Although this has been the case in each of the last two years, the difference this year is that stabilization is occurring without the support of tax credits and in spite of a declining share of REO sales."
Spring and summer is when the housing market traditionally reaches its peak, so values may continue to increase during the coming months.
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