Tuesday, September 12, 2023 / by Richard Eimers
The Fall in Home Prices May Already Be Over
NEW YORK – After falling on a year-over-year basis for five consecutive months, U.S. home prices increased in July. The recovery suggests that the residential real-estate downturn is turning out to be shorter and shallower than many housing economists expected after mortgage rates soared last year.
Analysts note that high interest rates have prompted homeowners to stay put rather than buy new homes and take on more expensive mortgages, resulting in an unusually low inventory of homes for sale.
The current market has a much lower overall volume of transactions, with sales of previously owned homes now down approximately 36% since January 2022 – but prices are generally holding firm outside of a few trouble spots as lower demand continues to outweigh a tighter supply.
The national median existing-home sale ...