Sunday, October 21, 2012

bizjournals: Midwest home sales in slump

pemp66seb.blogspot.com
Existing home sales fell 13.7 and median prices were $160,400 down 0.2 percent from Marcgh 2006. In some markets, the news was even As in other regions ofthe country, the Midwest is strugglingt with a tighter mortgage market and a rise in foreclosures. The reportzs that home sales in the Twin Citieds for the first quarter of 2007 were at their lowest level in10 years. The study, which used data from the Saintf Paul Area Association of said therewere 7,879 reported close d home sales during the first quartedr of 2007 in the 13-countyt metro, down 14.91 percent from first quarter of 2006. The study also said that the mediamn price of homes sold during this period was a declineof 0.
89 percent from one year ago. The biggesrt market in Midwest, , is in the midsg of its steepest sales declinein Crain's Chicago Business reports. Crain's reports that new home salesa fell 35 percent in thefirsrt quarter, the steepest decline in 11 years. The reportzs that, in addition to a brutal winter, salea were affected by the expectations of buyersand sellers. Sellerd have been slow to come off the high prices they expectesd when the marketwas booming. meanwhile, have been slow to pay anything but thelowest price.
In Kansasd City, the reports, salesd of new and existing homes in February were 3 percengt less than the same month last Sales of new houses increased 6 percent to 364 from 345 in Januaryu and decreased 24 percent from 476last year. Saless of existing houses rose 18 percentto 1,7490 from 1,476 in January and increased 2 percent from 1,7122 in February 2006. The average price for a new houses in the Kansas City areawas $285,154 in up 7 percent from $267,173 the previous February.
The averagre price for an existing house was up 1 percentfrom $147,795 last reports home sales dropped 16 percent in Marcyh in Central Ohio compared with March 2006, puttinfg the number of houses sold so far this year 5 percentg below last year's The Columbus Board of Realtors said 1,96 6 existing homes were sold in the region in March, comparecd with 2,344 a year earlier. Foreclosures have continued to risein , too, takingy a 24 percent jump in 2006 to "We've transitioned into a new environmenr where home prices are essentially flat and interestt rates are on the rise," said Richardr DeKaser, chief economist with Cleveland-based A toug market has led to picky buyers, particularluy on the high end, reports.
In Central Ohio, 89 houses sold for at least $1 millionn in 2005 after spending an average of 154 days on the while last year 85 housescostintg $1 million or more were sold afte being listed for an average of 180 "I've never seen this much inventory in the $1 million-plus range, " said John Kevin Sullivan, an agent at ReMax Premief Choice. The slump, as in other areas of the is alsohaving far-reachingg effects on other businesses in the region. reportsz that the slowdown in the housing market draine demand for water heaters madeby A.O. Smith in its latesg quarter. In Columbus, , the bankruptcy of a high-end home builder has left contractors holdingthe bag.
Yocca Custom Homes' tumble came amid a downturn in the housing Those difficulties have been especially acute in where foreclosure rates have reachecrecord levels. But for one of the contractors who worke dwith Yocca, George that's cold comfort. "We talked on a Friday and they said you can pick up the checlon Monday," said Stottlemyer, the owner of At Grads Inc. The following Monday, Stottlemyer said Yoccs Custom Homes' office was cleaned out.

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