HOME PRICES CONTINUE TO DECLINE NATIONWIDE - But Pace of Declines Has Slowed!
LATEST AVAILABLE S&P/CASE SHILLER INDEX SHOWS YEAR-OVER-YEAR DECLINES, WITHOUT THE RECORD-SETTING PACE!
For Chicago, there is a sliver lining to the otherwise dark cloud.
According to one major index of home price growth, the pace of the average home here in Chicago fell only 3.4% in February, versus January (latest data available). However, the year-over-year Chicago Price Decline is still 17.60%. Remember, this is an Index Average - comparing average home and condo prices today, to those back in January, 2000 - nine years ago. Wall Street Journal Reporter Phil Izzo analyzed the numbers in the Wall Street Journal last Tuesday, April 28th.
In total, the Chicago index is 126.3. In other words, assuming the S&P/Case Shiller Index were indeed a good prediction of average Chicago Home Prices, the average home across the Chicago Metro Area is 26.3 percent higher than it was just over nine years ago.
In the past year, several markets fared far worse than Chicago. Phoenix, Las Vegas, and San Francisco led the 20-Major Markets Surveyed with year-to-year index declines exceeding 30%. Phoenix is down from its peak, mid-2006 index by more than 50%. Other markets down from their peak indices between 2004 and 2006 - Detroit, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Miami, and San Diego.
Markets avoiding year-over-year double-digit price declines include Dallas, Cleveland, Denver, Charlotte, and Boston. New York City showed just over a 10% index decline since last year.
Over the long haul, however, most of the twenty metro markets indexed had higher average prices than in January, 2000. The only notable exceptions - Detroit, where the Index in February was 74.6, versus the 100 in early 2000, and Cleveland, with a February S&P/Case Shiller Index of 97.76.
The Izzo story has complete numbers, as well as an interactive map and relevant links.
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