Those who were planning to buy residential foreclosures and other types of residential properties got better deals during the fourth quarter of last year. According to nationwide housing market data, prices of residences declined in almost 50% of all cities in the U.S. during the October-December 2010 period.
NY foreclosed homes, including Staten Island foreclosed homes, are not as high as in other states, so majority of the region's cities posted a price increase instead of a loss during the quarter in focus. New York City and Boston, Massachusetts, are two of the metros that posted price gains during the quarter. However, a big percentage of the rest of the U.S. cities were not so lucky.
With relatively lower number of foreclosures in New York, its largest metropolitan city, New York City, posted a price increase of 4% during the previous quarter. However, 71 of the 152 metro areas experienced a decline in the median selling price of single family houses during October-December 2010, according to the National Association of Realtors. The biggest drop for the quarter was recorded in Cumberland, Maryland, which posted a 20% drop in median housing prices. Nationwide, median rate was at $170,600 last quarter, representing a decline of 0.2%.
According to housing industry experts, the drop in prices during the fourth quarter was mainly due to another surge in foreclosure numbers and the fact that a lot more people are deciding to buy residential foreclosures instead of regular houses. As of December, foreclosures are estimated to be around 2.2 million nationwide.
Aside from the number of foreclosures for sale, unemployment was also a major factor in determining prices at a metropolitan area during the last quarter of 2010. Nationwide housing data showed that those regions with stronger job markets posted the biggest improvements in median selling prices. New York City, Washington and Boston are some of the examples. The Washington metro area posted a rise of more than 8%, while Boston's median prices increased by 4.2%.
Meanwhile, housing experts are predicting further declines in housing prices this year in majority of U.S. cities. According to them, foreclosures will continue to drag prices down and more people will buy residential foreclosures, which will lower selling prices even further.
John Cutts has been educated in the finer points of the foreclosure market over 5 years.
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