Well, 2012 may or may not be the end of the world as we know it, but one thing is perhaps certain: it’s the end of the ghastly price hemorrhages home owners have suffered since the real estate market crashed in 2007. Nationally, home prices have dropped about 35% since the housing bubble burst – in the hardest hits areas, 55% or more. Yet new reports from several real estate research firms signify that home prices are finally stabilizing. The data reinforces a notion already asserted by many an economist, real estate agent and Wall Street investor: that 2012 is the year of the bottom.
The National Association of Realtors reports that in the first quarter of 2012, the median existing single-family home price, or final sales price, rose in 74 of the 146 metro areas that the association tracks. In the fourth quarter of 2011, only 29 metro areas had showed price gains. In other words 51% of the major cities across the U.S. have welcomed price gains, most notably in areas where the energy industry helps fuel the economy (Bismarck, N.D. and Oklahoma City, Okla.) and in snow bird retirement haven Florida (Tampa, Cape Coral, Palm Bay, Sarasota). Areas still plagued by falling prices are Atlanta, Ga., Mobile, Ala., Reno, Nev., Seattle, Wash., and Kingston, N.Y.
“Given the steadily dwindling supply of inventory and notably higher listing prices that are being negotiated today, prices are expected to show further improvements in the near future.” Lawrence Yun, chief economist of NAR, noted in a statement…
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