add to del.icio.us

Check this article on CNN finance:

http://money.cnn.com/2007/09/25/real_estate/low_existing_home_sales/index.htm?postversion=2007092511

There are 2 sides of this story here:

Begin extract of above CNN artice:

Some positive news from NAR was that prices broke a 12-month decline. The national median existing-home price for all housing types rose 0.2 percent to $224,500 in August from a year ago, when the median was $224,000.

The report clashes with other sources that have reported falling prices for most of the nation. The latest figures from the S&P/Case-Shiller index show prices fell between July 2006 and July 2007 in all 10 major housing markets covered by its main index. The average decline was 4.5 percent. Of the 20-city Case-Shiller index, 15 cities suffered declines.

End of extract.

Which one of the above is true? The question should be 'Which one of the above applies to me' - we need to find out for our location, our city and our neighborhood. I suggest we figure out the following to make our own study:

a. Talk to a realtor and obtain the trend of sales for the last 3 months.

b. Obtain the trend of sales compared to the same time in the past years. Remember, September through November has always been weak numbers compared to February through Juy.

c. Talk to home painters and see if there is increase in 'pre-sales' painting job.

Now the next question:

If the inventory is not bad in your neighborhood, Should I sell the home? Stay tuned, we will talk more about it in another blog.