Home prices fall for 8th month in February: S&P/Case - Yahoo! News

NEW YORK (Reuters) – U.S. single-family home prices fell for an eighth straight month in February, inching closer to an April 2009 trough, a closely watched survey said on Tuesday.

The S&P/Case Shiller composite index of 20 metropolitan areas declined 0.2 percent in February from January on a seasonally adjusted basis, slightly better than economists' median forecast for a drop of 0.3 percent.

The 20-city composite index was at 139.27, holding just a hair above its 2009 low of 139.26. Average home prices across the United States are back to levels where they were in the summer of 2003.

Prices in the 20 cities have fallen 3.3 percent year over year, in line with expectations.

"There is very little, if any, good news about housing. Prices continue to weaken, trends in sales and construction are disappointing," David Blitzer, chairman of the Index Committee at S&P Indices, said in a statement.

"Recent data on existing-home sales, housing starts, foreclosure activity and employment confirm that we are still in a slow recovery."

The glut of houses up for sale has kept prices low and the market has struggled to regain traction since a home buyer tax credit expired last spring.

Other data in the last week has suggested some stabilization in the market with sales of new and existing homes rising in March.

Financial markets were unchanged by the Case-Shiller data on Tuesday, with U.S. stock index futures pointing to a higher open with investors focused on earnings from major companies.

(Reporting by Leah Schnurr, Editing by Chizu Nomiyama)

via news.yahoo.com

New home sales up, inventory at 43-1/2 year low - Yahoo! News

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – New U.S. single-family home sales increased more than expected in March and the supply of new houses on the market hit their lowest level since August 1967, but prices fell from a year ago.

The Commerce Department said on Monday sales rose 11.1 percent to a seasonally adjusted 300,000 unit annual rate, after an upwardly revised 270,000 unit pace in February.

Economists polled by Reuters had forecast new home sales climbing to a 280,000-unit pace last month from a previously reported record low 250,000 unit rate.

Compared to March last year sales were down 21.9 percent.

The market for new homes is being squeezed by competition from previously owned homes and a deluge of foreclosed properties, even though inventories of new houses are at a 43-1/2 year low.

A report last week showed there were 3.55 million previously owned homes on the market in March, well above the economy's natural rate of between 2 million and 2.5 million.

When foreclosed homes and those that are highly delinquent are taken into account, economists say supply is anywhere in the range of 8 million to 9 million.

The median sales price for a new home rose 2.9 percent last month to $213,800 from February. Compared with March last year, the median price fell 4.9 percent.

At March's sales pace, the supply of new homes on the market slipped to 7.3 months' worth from 8.2 months' worth in February. There were 183,000 new homes available for sale last month, the lowest since August 1967.

(Reporting by Lucia Mutikani; Editing by Neil Stempleman)

via news.yahoo.com

The main reason there is low inventory in Arizona is nobody has been building. So the supply side is really not that unexpected. Good news that sales are up, though.

Existing home sales rise, prices fall - Yahoo! News

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Sales of previously owned U.S. homes rose more than expected in March, a trade group said on Wednesday, suggesting the housing market's downward trend may be close to hitting a bottom.

The National Association of Realtors said sales rose 3.7 percent month over month to an annual rate of 5.10 million units after an upwardly revised 4.92 million unit pace in February.

Economists polled by Reuters had expected sales to rise 2.5 percent to a 5.0 million-unit pace from the previously reported 4.88 million unit rate. Sales have now risen in six of the past eight months.

"It's slow, steady progress, but you cannot not be disturbed by the slow pace of recovery," said Pierre Ellis, an economist at Decision Economics in New York. "Demand is rising even with higher mortgage rates so that's encouraging."

The housing market is struggling to find its footing as a wave of foreclosed properties keeps supply elevated and prices depressed.

Last month, foreclosures and short sales, which typically occur at about 20 percent below market value, accounted for 40 percent of transactions. That was the highest since April 2009 and was up from 39 percent in February.

The median home price fell 5.9 percent in March from a year earlier to $159,600. Compared with March last year, sales were down 6.3 percent.

"A sustained turnaround in the housing market is still far off based on earlier-released depressed readings for housing starts, building permits and builders' confidence indices," said Krishen Rangasamy an economist at CIBC World Markets in Toronto.

MORTGAGE APPLICATIONS UP

A separate report on Wednesday showed demand for home loans rose last week, as interest rates eased and purchase activity picked up. The Mortgage Bankers Association said its purchase index rose 10 percent to 210.8, the highest since early December.

Last month, all-cash purchases made up a record 35 percent of sales in March and the NAR said the lower and upper ends of the market were showing strong activity, with the middle part -- which accounts for the existing housing market -- remaining sluggish.

Sales last month rose across the board, with multifamily dwellings rising 1.6 percent and single-family home units advancing 4 percent.

At March's sales pace, the supply of existing homes on the market slipped to 8.4 months' worth from 8.5 months in February. However, the number of previously owned homes on the market rose 1.5 percent to 3.55 million.

A supply of between six and seven months is generally considered ideal, with higher readings pointing to lower house prices.

(Reporting by Lucia Mutikani; Editing by Neil Stempleman)

via news.yahoo.com

Housing starts, permits rebound in March - Yahoo! News

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Housing starts and permits for future home construction rose more than expected in March, snapping back from the prior month's winter weather depressed levels, government data showed on Tuesday.

The Commerce Department said housing starts rose 7.2 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 549,000 units. February's starts were revised up to a 512,000-unit pace from the previously reported rate of 479,000 units.

Economists polled by Reuters had forecast housing starts rising to a 520,000-unit rate. Compared to March last year, residential construction was down 13.4 percent.

Still, the bounce back in residential construction does not signal recovery as an over- supply of homes continues to discourage builders from embarking on new projects.

"It's mainly a rebound from previous month's decline. We still think the housing market is very weak, and the high inventory is still depressing sales and prices," said Sireen Harajli, an economist at Credit Agricole Corporate & Investment Bank in New York.

"We hope to see some signs of improvement toward the end of the year, but we won't see substantial improvement until 2012."

Stock index futures were steady at higher levels, while government debt prices were steady at lower levels. The dollar held at lower levels versus the euro.

Home builders' sentiment slipped a notch in April, the National Association of Home Builders said on Monday, with builders viewing sales conditions now and in the next six months as unfavorable.

Residential construction was likely a drag on economic growth in the first quarter after making a modest contribution in the last three months of 2010. Home building accounts for about 2.4 percent of gross domestic product.

Groundbreaking last month was lifted by a 5.8 percent rise in volatile multifamily homes. Single-family home construction increased 7.7 percent.

New building permits advanced 11.2 percent to a 594,000-unit pace last month, rebounding from February's record low 534,000 units. Economist had expected overall building permits to rise to a 540,000-unit pace in March.

Permits were propped up last month by a 25.2 percent jump in the multifamily segment. Permits to construct buildings with five or more units rose to their highest level since January 2009 -- likely reflecting growing demand for rental properties.

Permits to build single-family homes rose 5.7 percent. However, new home completions dropped 14.2 percent to a record low 509,000 units in March

(Reporting by Lucia Mutikani, editing by Neil Stempleman)

via news.yahoo.com