Portland Home Prices fall 4.8%
U.S. home prices rose in February for the first time since late 2006, but Portland was one of the few exceptions, with prices dipping 4.8 percent in the past year, according to the latest Standard & Poor’s Case-Shiller index.
Home prices were up 1.4 percent nationally in the index’s 10-city composite and up 0.6 percent in its 20-city composite. It was the first time both indices showed positive growth since December 2006. For the month, home prices fell in 18 of the 20 cities in the index, including Portland, where prices fell 2.4 percent, the biggest month-to-month decline in the index.
- Portland, Charlotte, Las Vegas, New York, Seattle and Tampa posted new lows for home prices.
- Portland home prices have dropped 23 percent since the market peaked in July 2007.
- Nationally, home prices have returned to mid-2003 levels after peaking in mid-2006.
David Blitzer, chairman of the index committee, cautioned against using the overall improvement as a measure of improvement in the market. “This simply confirms that the pace of decline is less severe than a year ago,” he said in a news release. He attributed improvement in home sales, inventory levels and housing starts to the federal home buyer tax credit, worth up to $8,000 for first-time buyers who have homes under contract by April 30. The expiration of the credit and rising foreclosure activity mean the worst is not yet over. “As these homes are put up for sales, we may see some further dampening in home prices,” Blitzer said in the news release.
The Case-Shiller home price index measures single family home prices. It has a base value of 100 based on home prices in January 2000.
Portland’s February home price index was 143.69 in February, meaning a $100,000 investment in 2000 now is worth $143,690. The Portland market peaked at 186.51 in July 2007. Portland narrowly edged out Seattle’s index of 143.54. Seattle peaked at 192.3 in July 2007. Detroit remains the only city in the index with prices below 2000 levels. Its index is 70.50. It last exceeded the 100 level in January 2008. Washington D.C., is the best market for long-term home appreciation with a February index of 176.49. Los Angeles was second with 171.82.
Read more: Home prices fall 4.8 percent – Portland Business Journal