West, Midwest Demonstrate Continued Improvements, According to Homes.com Local Market Index Reports

Norfolk, Virginia (PRWEB) August 08, 2014

Homes.com, leading online real estate destination, has released its May Local Market Index, a price performance summary of repeat sales in the top 100 U.S. markets, and the companion Midsize Markets Report, for markets ranked between 101-300. Utilizing repeat sales home pricing data, the Index showed year-over-year gains for single-family properties in 299 of the top 300 U.S. markets.

The West continued to lead in the top 10 yearly gaining markets, representing eight of the top 10. For the twelfth month in a row, California captured five of the top 10 annual improving spots, with San Diego remaining in the lead with an increase of more than 11 percent. In the Northwest, Seattle and Portland also held spots on the yearly gaining list with an increase of over nine percent for each. The West dominated the yearly improving midsized markets, with six markets coming from that region. Annually, Bend-Redmond, Oregon took the top spot, with an 11.25 percent increase. California had four of the top 10 year-over-year markets.

In the nation’s top 100 largest local markets, 95 increased their three-month average index in May. New Orleans saw the biggest increase in that three-month period -- nearly 1.5 percent. The top 10 monthly gaining list over a three-month average was a mixture of markets in the South, Midwest and West. The South dominated with five markets, followed by the Midwest with three markets. Albuquerque and San Francisco are the only western markets on the three-month average gaining list, with an increase of .7 percent for each market. Of the midsized markets, the top performers increased at least .8 percent over 3 months. Of the 200 midsized markets measured, 199 showed yearly gains.

This month, 36 of the top 100 markets showed a complete price recovery, down one market from last month’s count. Knoxville, Tennessee was the only market that fell out of rebound. Of the top 100 markets that rebounded, six were from Texas, all of which averaged a total rebound percentage of more than 109 percent. Additionally, 69 midsized markets have now rebounded 100 percent or more, up one from last month’s report. The midsize market just added to the full rebound list was Columbus, Georgia-Alabama, with a rebound percentage of 100%.

“If we combine the Top 100 and the Midsize Markets 200, representing the largest 300 U.S. markets by population, 105 markets, or 35%, have achieved full pricing recovery,” said Brock MacLean, executive vice president of Homes.com. “While the Pacific Coast continues to see markets with some of the fastest rising prices, the South and Midwest continue to show steady growth. The South, specifically some Florida markets, still has price recovery to attain. However, overall improvements can be seen. Nationwide sustainability in the housing recovery process remains promising.”

Additional highlights from the Homes.com Local Market Index reports included:

• New Orleans-Metairie, Louisiana saw the biggest increase in this month’s report over a three-month average, with a 1.1% index point increase.
• Louisville/Jefferson County, Kentucky-Indiana saw the largest three-month average decrease, at 0.28%.
• Annually, the San Diego-Carlsbad, California and San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, California metro areas posted index point increases of over 11.4%.
• The only markets on the yearly gaining list not from the West were Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, Florida and Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, Georgia, which saw year-over-year increases of 9.86% and 9.72%, respectively.
• Of the midsized markets, the lone market that decreased annually was Wheeling, West Virginia-Ohio, with a 4.34% index point decrease.

Additional highlights from the Homes.com Rebound Report:

• Knoxville, Tennessee was close to showing a rebound again, with a rebound percentage of 99.92%.
• Two additional markets close to rebound were Provo-Orem, Utah and Augusta-Richmond County, Georgia-South Carolina, with rebound percentages of 99.44% and 99.37%, respectively.
• The South region continued to dominate recovery, with 18 markets having(I do rebound percentages greater than 100%.

Resources:
Download all Homes.com Local Market Reports, supporting documents and rebound percentages for May 2014.
Download the Homes.com Local Market Report tables and graphs.
Learn more about the methodology used to create Homes.com’s Local Market Index, the Homes.com Rebound Report and other frequently asked questions.

To receive a comprehensive data file, including index values in every zip code within a local market, contact LocalMarketReports(at)Homes(dot)com.

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