Home Prices in Steepest Quarterly Drop

NEW YORK - February, 14 2008 - Home prices continued their plunge during the last three months of 2007, setting a real estate trade group’s record for the biggest-ever quarterly drop.

The national median price drop of 5.8%, to $206,200 from $219,300, was the steepest ever recorded by the National Association of Realtors (NAR), which has been compiling the report since 1979.

National Association of Realtors officials blamed the liquidity squeeze that began last summer for much of the drop. Home buyers had trouble obtaining mortgage financing, especially for more expensive properties.

“The continuing crunch in the jumbo loan market that began in August has disproportionately reduced the number of transactions in higher price ranges,” said Lawrence Yun, National Association of Realtors’ chief economist, in a statement.

Fewer expensive homes were sold, bringing down median prices.

“California, south Florida, D.C., many of the high-cost markets are reflecting that,” said Walter Molony, a spokesman for National Association of Realtors.

Each of the four U.S. regions recorded losses compared with the fourth quarter of 2006. The West took the worst hit, at 8.7%. Prices dropped 4.8% in the Northeast, 5.4% in the South and 3.2% in the Midwest.

In Lansing, Michigan, square in the Midwest Rust Belt, prices plunged 18.8% to $109,600. In Sacramento, California, prices fell 18.5% to $197,600, and in both Jackson, Miss and Riverside, California prices dropped 16.8%.

Seventy-three of the nation’s 151 real estate markets recorded price gains. Cumberland, Maryland, led the winners with an increase of 19% to $116,600.

The least expensive single-family-home market in the nation got even cheaper, as prices in Youngstown, Ohio, dropped 9.3% to $72,600. The most expensive market, San Jose, California, got dearer, with prices up 11.2% to $845,300.

Condo prices fared better. The fourth-quarter median condo price of $221,100 was little changed from the $221,200 a year earlier.

But some areas, mostly Sun Belt cities, took significant price hits.

Cape Coral, Florida, condo prices were down 26% compared with the last three months of 2006 to $202,300, and Tucson, Arizona, prices dropped 19.8% to $128,000. Atlanta prices fell 12% to $141,100, and Las Vegas was off 10.3% to $178,500.

Bismarck, North Dakota, condo prices recorded the largest gain at 20.8% to $125,000, with New Orleans second at a 17.8% gain to $173,300.

Last year, fourth-quarter home prices were 2.7% lower from the year before.

“The healthiest housing markets today generally are moderately priced and are experiencing job growth and often population growth, which in turn is supporting strong price growth,” said National Association of Realtors’ Yun. “Most of the weakest markets have either experienced both job and population losses, or they are experiencing corrections following a prolonged period of rapid price growth.”

Many markets have also been affected by soaring foreclosure rates. Large numbers of houses for sale, many repossessed from borrowers, sit empty, depressing prices in cities from coast to coast - but most notably in economically distressed Midwest industrial towns and some once-booming Sun Belt cities.

National Association of Realtors numbers are arrived at by examining the prices of all homes sold during the period. The median price is the one in which half of all homes sold for more and half for less.

Using median prices rather than mean - or average - prices reduces the impact of the sale of very expensive homes, which would raise mean prices disproportionately.

The National Association of Realtors take on price trends, usually an optimistic one, was that recent steps taken in Washington would lead to improved conditions later this year.

“Higher limits for FHA loans, which go into effect March 14, will be a big help to first-time buyers in high-cost markets,” said National Association of Realtors President Richard Gaylord.

“Higher limits for conventional loans purchased by Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae will take a bit longer,” he said. “When they become available, high-income, creditworthy borrowers in high-cost areas will have access to affordable and safer financing, and that will help unleash pent-up demand.”

But other industry insiders are predicting harder times ahead. A Merrill Lynch report in January forecast peak-to-trough price declines of 15% in 2008 and another 10% in 2009 before markets begin to recover.

			SINGLE FAMILY HOMES
Metro Area				Median Price
					4Q 2007 (in thousands)
Akron, OH				$109.1 	-1.0%
Albany-Schenectady-Troy, NY		$199.7 	0.5%
Albuquerque, NM				$195.9 	4.5%
Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton, PA-NJ 	$246.5 	-1.3%
Amarillo, TX				$120.2 	11.0%
Anaheim-Santa Ana, CA (Orange Co.) 	$657.4 	-4.8%
Appleton, WI				$130.9 	1.9%
Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Marietta, GA	$164.3 	-1.5%
Atlantic City, NJ			$278.8 	10.7%
Austin-Round Rock, TX			$185.7 	6.4%
Baltimore-Towson, MD			$275.1 	-1.0%
Barnstable Town, MA			$382.3 	2.4%
Baton Rouge, LA				$169.7 	-2.1%
Beaumont-Port Arthur, TX		$113.6 	-5.3%
Binghamton, NY				$110.0 	14.8%
Birmingham-Hoover, AL			$156.1 	-3.5%
Bismarck, ND				$144.7 	13.5%
Bloomington-Normal, IL			$145.3 	-4.0%
Boise City-Nampa, ID			$198.0 	-5.5%
Boston-Cambridge-Quincy, MA-NH**	$380.7 	-1.9%
Boulder, CO				$371.1 	3.4%
Bridgeport-Stamford-Norwalk, CT		$460.2 	3.3%
Buffalo-Niagara Falls, NY		$105.4 	9.1%
Canton-Massillon, OH			$98.1 	-7.6%
Cape Coral-Fort Myers, FL		$225.3 	-13.0%
Cedar Rapids, IA			$134.9 	4.4%
Champaign-Urbana, IL			$143.6 	1.4%
Charleston-North Charleston, SC		$204.5 	-3.0%
Charleston, WV				$122.9 	7.5%
Charlotte-Gastonia-Concord, NC-SC	$204.7 	3.3%
Chattanooga, TN-GA			$121.6 	-9.7%
Chicago-Naperville-Joliet, IL		$261.0 	-2.6%
Cincinnati-Middletown, OH-KY-IN		$132.4 	-4.5%
Cleveland-Elyria-Mentor, OH		$118.6 	-9.4%
Colordo Springs, CO			$210.7 	-4.0%
Columbia, SC				$144.9 	N/A
Columbus, OH				$137.2 	-1.1%
Corpus Christi, TX			$137.9 	6.3%
Cumberland, MD-WV			$116.6 	19.0%
Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX		$145.0 	0.5%
Davenport-Moline-Rock Island, IA-IL	$102.1 	-1.6%
Dayton, OH				$106.6 	-10.8%
Decatur, IL				$75.0 	-15.9%
Deltona-Daytona Beach-Ormond Beach, FL	$181.1 	-8.8%
Denver-Aurora, CO			$230.1 	-6.3%
Des Moines, IA				$152.6 	5.6%
Detroit-Warren-Livonia, MI		$133.3 	-13.8%
Dover, DE				$199.6 	-3.2%
Durham, NC				$178.1 	5.6%
Elmira, NY				$81.2 	3.6%
El Paso, TX				$133.6 	1.4%
Erie, PA				$98.6 	-3.9%
Eugene-Springfield, OR			$237.6 	2.9%
Fargo, ND-MN				$141.7 	3.7%
Farmington, NM				$186.5 	1.9%
Ft. Wayne, IN				$90.9 	-10.5%
Gainesville, FL				$196.7 	-7.0%
Gary-Hammond, IN			$124.6 	1.1%
Glens Falls, NY				$163.9 	-6.0%
Grand Rapids, MI			$124.3 	-4.0%
Green Bay, WI				$148.9 	2.3%
Greensboro-High Point, NC		$150.7 	0.3%
Greenville, SC				$155.4 	3.6%
Gulfport-Biloxi, MS			$150.4 	-1.1%
Hagerstown-Martinsburg, MD-WV		$192.1 	-10.2%
Hartford, CT				$258.0 	1.6%
Honolulu, HI				$625.3 	0.9%
Houston-Baytown-Sugar Land, TX		$150.3 	1.1%
Indianapolis, IN			$114.0 	-2.6%
Jackson, MS				$120.9 	-16.8%
Jacksonville, FL			$177.6 	-1.6%
Kankakee-Bradley, IL			$124.4 	-1.0%
Kansas City, MO-KS			$148.2 	-3.2%
Kennewick-Richland-Pasco, WA		$172.4 	14.0%
Kingston, NY				$246.1 	1.2%
Knoxville, TN				$155.0 	0.9%
Lansing-E.Lansing, MI			$109.6 	-18.8%
Las Vegas-Paradise, NV			$273.5 	-12.8%
Lexington-Fayette, KY			$142.9 	-2.3%
Lincoln, NE				$138.1 	0.3%
Little Rock-N. Little Rock, AR		$127.5 	1.3%
Los Angeles-Long Beach-Santa Ana, CA	$509.7 	-13.1%
Louisville, KY-IN			$133.0 	-3.3%
Madison, WI				$227.7 	1.0%
Memphis, TN-MS-AR			$124.3 	-12.4%
Miami-Fort Lauderdale-Miami Beach, FL	$345.9 	-5.7%
Milwaukee-Waukesha-West Allis, WI	$219.5 	4.1%
Minneapolis-St Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI	$217.2 	-4.9%
Mobile, AL				$137.4 	0.1%
Montgomery, AL				$143.4 	2.7%
New Haven-Milford, CT			$268.8 	-3.6%
New Orleans-Metairie-Kenner, LA 	$158.2 	-2.4%
New York New Jersey NY-NJ-PA		$457.4 	-1.1%
New York-Wayne-White Plains, NY-NJ	$523.3 	3.6%
NY: Edison, NJ				$370.3 	0.5%
NY: Nassau-Suffolk, NY			$461.7 	-2.5%
NY: Newark-Union, NJ-PA			$435.8 	5.3%
Norwich-New London, CT			$252.4 	-2.2%
Ocala, FL				$155.1 	-9.1%
Oklahoma City, OK			$133.8 	8.2%
Omaha, NE-IA				$135.7 	-0.4%
Orlando, FL				$240.4 	-11.7%
Palm Bay-Melbourne-Titusville, FL	$151.3 	-13.0%
Pensacola-Ferry Pass-Brent, FL		$156.4 	-3.1%
Peoria, IL				$118.5 	8.8%
Philadelphia PA-NJ-DE-MD		$226.8 	1.1%
Phoenix-Mesa-Scottsdale, AZ		$241.7 	-7.8%
Pittsburgh, PA				$116.9 	4.2%
Pittsfield, MA				$202.6 	-8.2%
Portland-South Portland-Biddeford, ME 	$242.1 	-1.3%
Portland-Vancouver-Beaverton, OR-WA 	$290.5 	1.8%
Providence, New Bedford, RI-MA		$273.2 	-6.2%
Raleigh-Cary, NC			$235.6 	4.0%
Reading, PA				$153.6 	7.3%
Reno-Sparks, NV				$301.3 	-9.4%
Richmond, VA				$225.7 	-1.6%
Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, CA	$338.0 	-16.8%
Rochester, NY				$120.8 	8.4%
Rockford, IL				$113.2 	-6.8%
Sacramento Arcade Roseville, CA		$297.6 	-18.5%
Saginaw-Saginaw Township North, MI 	$74.9 	N/A
Saint Louis, MO-IL			$133.5 	-7.0%
Salem, OR				$231.2 	3.6%
Salt Lake City, UT			$229.1 	2.5%
San Antonio, TX				$151.7 	7.9%
San Diego-Carlsbad-San Marcos, CA	$522.9 	-9.8%
San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA	$777.3 	5.5%
San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA	$845.3 	11.2%
Sarasota-Bradenton-Venice, FL		$274.1 	-9.0%
Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA		$377.5 	1.2%
Shreveport-Bossier City, LA		$135.4 	3.6%
Sioux Falls, SD				$142.4 	6.5%
South Bend-Mishawaka, IN		$86.3 	-3.9%
Spartanburg, SC				$121.8 	0.4%
Spokane, WA				$194.1 	2.6%
Springfield, IL				$108.6 	14.4%
Springfield, MA				$206.4 	3.5%
Springfield, MO				$120.7 	0.9%
Syracuse, NY				$126.3 	9.4%
Tallahassee, FL				$180.9 	-2.4%
Tampa-St.Petersburg-Clearwater, FL 	$201.6 	-12.2%
Toledo, OH				$104.0 	-0.8%
Topeka, KS				$112.3 	11.1%
Trenton-Ewing, NJ			$306.8 	6.2%
Tucson, AZ				$235.8 	-1.5%
Virginia Beach, Norfolk, VA-NC		$236.0 	0.3%
Washington Arlington, DC-VA-MD-WV	$400.1 	-5.1%
Waterloo, Cedar Falls, IA		$115.4 	12.1%
Wichita, KS				$113.8 	0.4%
Worcester, MA				$259.0 	-5.7%
Yakima, WA				$170.6 	18.0%
Youngstown-Warren-Boardman, OH-PA	$72.6 	-9.3%
UNITED STATEs				$206.2 	-5.8%
NORTHEAST				$261.7 	-4.8%
MIDWEST					$156.3 	-3.2%
SOUTH					$171.7 	-5.4%
WEST					$324.1 	-8.7%

			APARTMENT CONDO COOPS
Metro Area				Median Price		% Change
					4Q 2007 (thousands)	(1-yr)
Albuquerque, NM				$146.3			5.7%
Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Marietta, GA 	$141.1			-12.0%
Austin-Round Rock, TX			$173.2			7.6%
Baltimore-Towson, MD			$235.5			0.3%
Bismarck, ND				$125.0			20.8%
Boston-Cambridge-Quincy, MA-NH		$296.9			2.4%
Boulder, CO				$212.7			-0.9%
Bridgeport-Stamford-Norwalk, CT		$260.1			3.8%
Cape Coral-Fort Myers, FL		$202.3			-26.0%
Chicago-Naperville-Joliet, IL		$236.3			6.4%
Cincinnati-Middletown, OH-KY-IN 	$125.6			3.0%
Cleveland-Elyria-Mentor, OH		$120.0			-5.3%
Colorado Springs, CO			$144.6			-3.3%
Columbus, OH				$131.9			5.8%
Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX		$131.0			4.9%
Greensboro-High Point, NC		$116.7			-2.0%
Hartford, CT				$180.5			5.6%
Honolulu, HI				$320.0			2.1%
Houston-Baytown-Sugar Land, TX		$135.5			5.7%
Indianapolis, IN			$116.7			-3.5%
Jacksonville, FL			$142.7			-7.0%
Knoxville, TN				$160.8			 10.6%
Las Vegas-Paradise, NV			$178.5			-10.3%
Los Angeles-Long Beach-Santa Ana, CA	$363.1			-9.7%
Louisville, KY-IN			$125.5			-4.2%
Madison, WI				$179.6			-3.2%
Miami-Fort Lauderdale-Miami Beach, FL	$194.3			-6.0%
Milwaukee-Waukesha-West Allis, WI	$172.1			 2.9%
New Haven-Milford, CT			$180.9			 1.9%
New Orleans-Metairie-Kenner, LA		$173.3			17.8%
Norwich-New London, CT			$182.7			-2.7%
New York-Wayne-White Plains, NY-NJ	$310.9			-2.9%
NY: Newark-Union, NJ-PA			$315.1			-0.8%
NY:Edison, NJ				$271.8			-5.5%
NY:Nassau-Suffolk, NY			$249.2			0.2%
Palm Bay-Melbourne-Titusville, FL	$124.7			1.0%
Philadelphia Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD	$190.8			1.0%
Phoenix-Mesa-Scottsdale, AZ		$183.1			3.7%
Portland-South Portland-Biddeford, ME	$201.2			-2.5%
Portland-Vancouver-Beaverton, OR-WA	$207.3			10.6%
Providence - New Bedford, RI-MA		$222.3			3.6%
Reno-Sparks, NV				$186.9			-5.2%
Richmond, VA				$187.8			4.3%
Rochester, NY				$122.7			1.8%
Sacramento, Arden, Roseville, CA	$214.3			-8.7%
Salt Lake City, UT			$163.3			8.8%
San Diego-Carlsbad-San Marcos, CA	$327.0			-8.7%
San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA	$595.7			2.7%
Sarasota-Bradenton-Venice, FL		$272.2			-4.1%
Springfield, MA				$153.0			-4.6%
Syracuse, NY				$126.9			-5.9%
Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL	$171.4			0.8%
Toledo, OH				$138.2			-4.0%
Trenton-Ewing, NJ			$244.2			2.5%
Tucson, AZ				$128.0			-19.8%
Virginia Beach-Norfolk, VA-NC		$175.4			0.3%
Washington-Arlington, DC-VA-MD-WV	$288.1			0.1%
Wichita, KS				$109.9			7.1%
Worcester, MA				$212.9			6.7%
UNITED STATES				$221.1			0.0%
NORTHEAST				$249.0			-1.2%
MIDWEST					$193.6			-1.0%
SOUTH					$180.2			1.0%
WEST					$250.4			-2.8%

		TOTAL HOME SALES

Metro Area			Total Sales	% Change
				(in thousands)	(1-yr)

ALABAMA				102.0		-14.4%
ALASKA				25.2		-7.4%
ARIZONA				80.8		-37.5%
ARKANSAS			76.0		-5.5%
CALIFORNIA			305.2		-29.8%
COLORADO			109.2		-2.8%
CONNECTICUT			51.6		-21.8%
DELAWARE			13.2		-19.5%
District of Columbia		8.0		-4.8%
FLORIDA				239.6		-29.0%
GEORGIA				185.6		-23.8%
HAWAII				23.2		-14.7%
IDAHO				39.5		N/A
ILLINOIS			212.0		-20.5%
INDIANA				131.6		N/A
IOWA				58.8		-16.9%
KANSAS				66.8		-9.2%
KENTUCKY			84.8		-14.2%
LOUISIANA			65.6		-23.0%
MAINE				22.4		-17.6%
MARYLAND			67.6		-33.5%
MASSACHUSETTS			108.4		-10.3%
MICHIGAN			175.2		-2.7%
MINNESOTA			87.6		-15.8%
MISSISSIPPI			58.0		-8.2%
MISSOURI			106.0		-16.4%
MONTANA				21.2		-14.5%
NEBRASKA			30.0		-17.6%
NEVADA				34.4		-44.2%
NEW JERSEY			128.4		-9.1%
NEW MEXICO			33.6		-38.7%
NEW YORK			275.6 		-8.7%
NORTH CAROLINA			185.6 		-17.7%
NORTH DAKOTA 			14.4 		Unchange
OHIO				234.0 		-10.1%
OKLAHOMA			96.8		-6.2%
OREGON				52.0		-38.4%
PENNSYLVANIA			198.0		-13.5%
RHODE ISLAND			13.2		-17.5%
SOUTH CAROLINA			88.0 		-14.1%
SOUTH DAKOTA 			19.6 		8.9%
TENNESSEE 			137.2 		-14.5%
TEXAS 				514.4 		-10.2%
UTAH 				34.4 		-33.8%
VERMONT 			12.8 		-13.5%
VIRGINIA 			100.4 		-20.1%
WASHINGTON 			115.2 		-16.0%
WEST VIRGINIA 			27.2 		-6.8%
WISCONSIN 			95.6 		-16.1%
WYOMING 			7.6 		-42.4%
United States 			4,957 		-20.9%
Northeast 			867 		-18.2%
Midwest 			1,173 		-18.1%
South 				1,997 		-19.9%
West 				923 		-27.7%

Source: *All areas are metropolitan statistical areas (MSA) as
defined by the US Office of Management and Budget as of 2004.

** Boston-Cambridge-Quincy, MA-NH - Data from New Hampshire not available
They include the named central city and surrounding areas.
N/A Not Available p Preliminary r Revised
© 2008 National Association of REALTORS

Home prices in steepest quarterly drop
by Les Christie | CNNMoney.com