TRULIA: ASKING PRICES ON THE RISE AS HOUSING RECOVERY EXPANDS

Source: Trulia

Local Housing Market Recovery Strong in Florida, Sputtering in California

SAN FRANCISCO, April 5, 2012 – Trulia today launched the Trulia Price Monitor and the Trulia Rent Monitor, the earliest leading indicators available of trends in home prices and rents. Based on the for-sale homes and rentals listed on Trulia.com, these Monitors take into account changes in the mix of listed homes, reflecting trends in prices and rents for similar homes in similar neighborhoods through March 31, 2012.

After Free Falling For Years, Asking Prices Rose Nationally 1.4 Percent Quarter-Over-Quarter
Nationally, asking prices on for-sale homes – which lead sales prices by approximately two or more months – were 1.4 percent higher in March than one quarter ago. Prices increased month over month 0.9 percent in March and 0.6 percent in February. The Trulia Price Monitor is seasonally adjusted, so these monthly and quarterly increases are on top of typical springtime price jumps. Unadjusted for seasonality, asking prices rose 2.4 percent quarter over quarter. According to the Monitor, asking prices had been declining prior to February and reached a low in January. Throughout 2011, asking prices rose slightly in several months of the year, but never more than 0.2 percent in a month. Asking prices in March were 0.7 percent below their level one year earlier.

Asking Prices Jump More Than 10 Percent in Cape Coral, Miami and Phoenix Year-Over-Year
The Trulia Price Monitor revealed that asking prices rose year-over-year in all large Florida metros, and fastest in Cape Coral-Fort Myers and Miami. Asking prices also rose in Phoenix, Pittsburgh and the Detroit area. Meanwhile, local housing markets in much of the West continue to struggle. Prices fell most in Tacoma and Seattle, followed by Sacramento and Las Vegas. All large California metros saw year-over-year price declines.

Rents Continue To Climb, Rising Nationally 5.0 Percent Year-Over-Year
Asking rents rose over the past year in almost all large metro areas included in the Trulia Rent Monitor. In the largest metros, rents rose 6.2 percent in New York and 6.1 percent in Chicago, but only 0.6 percent in Los Angeles. Rents rose strongly in Miami (12.1 percent) and Denver (9.9 percent), which also experienced large asking price increases. Meanwhile, rental affordability declined in places where rents rose while prices fell, most notably in San Francisco (rents up 11.1 percent), Seattle (9.7 percent), San Jose (9.4 percent) and Boston (9.2 percent).



PRE-APPROVED QUOTES
•“With all eyes on the lookout for signs of home price increases now that sales and construction are improving, the Trulia Price Monitor is the finger on the pulse of price trends almost in real time,” said Jed Kolko, Trulia’s Chief Economist. “Asking prices lead sales prices by two or more months, and sales price indexes have a five-to-eight week lag in reporting. That means the Trulia Price Monitor can detect price movements – such as the 1.4 percent quarter-over-quarter increase in March – at least three months before the major sales-price indexes do."
• “Asking prices rose in February and March, but this doesn’t mean that the bottom is forever behind us. The robo-signing settlement will accelerate the foreclosure process, pushing more homes onto the market and dragging down prices in areas that suffered most from the housing crash,” said Jed Kolko, Trulia’s Chief Economist. “Meanwhile, some relief is in sight for strapped renters as the wave of new multi-family buildings that broke ground in 2011 will be completed later this year.”



MULTIMEDIA
•To download the full list of price and rent changes for the 100 largest metro areas, click here.
•To download a map of price changes for the 100 largest metros, click here.



METHODOLOGY

Based on the for-sale homes and rentals listed on Trulia.com, the Trulia Price Monitor and the Trulia Rent Monitor report trends in asking prices and rents, after accounting for changes in the mix of listed homes. The Trulia Price Monitor is seasonally adjusted and reports yearly and shorter changes for the nation and 100 largest metros. The Trulia Rent Monitor reports yearly changes for the nation and most of the 100 largest metros. To view the full methodology, see here.



ABOUT TRULIA, INC.
Trulia gives home buyers, sellers, owners and renters the inside scoop on properties, places and real estate professionals. Trulia has unique info on the areas people want to live that can’t be found anywhere else: users can learn about agents, neighborhoods, schools, crime and even ask the local community questions. Real estate professionals use Trulia to connect with millions of transaction-ready buyers and sellers each month via our hyper local advertising services, social recommendations and top-rated mobile apps. Trulia is headquartered in downtown San Francisco and is backed by Accel Partners and Sequoia Capital. Trulia and the Trulia logo are registered trademarks of Trulia, Inc.

URL to original article: http://info.trulia.com/trulia-price-and-rent-monitor-march-2012

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