House Price Declines Continue

Seeking Alpha's Housing Tracker is a collection of housing-related excerpts from various sources, grouped by topic. Feel free to post any interesting links on the subject in the comments section below.

Overview 

• Home sales were up in September in Northern Virginia, North Carolina and California.
• Home prices are down in Prince William County, N.V., Eagle County, Colorado, Wilmington, North Carolina, California, Denver, Colorado and Long Island, Orange County, Brooklyn and NYC, NY. 

House Price/Sales Data

Foreclosures, Falling Prices Spur Pr. William Home Sales. “Northern Virginia Association of Realtors: Last month, 1,116 homes were sold in Prince William County, a 235% increase from Sept. 2007… With banks choking on a glut of empty, foreclosed properties, the median sale price for detached single-family houses in Prince William plunged 41% in the past year, from $405,000 to $239,900. In September, 118 homes in the county sold for less than $100,000, and many foreclosed townhouses sold for less than $70,000.” (Washington Post, Oct. 17) 

Brooklyn Home Prices Drop as Banks Cut Jobs and Curb Lending. “Real estate appraiser Miller Samuel Inc. and broker Prudential Douglas Elliman Real Estate: Brooklyn home prices tumbled 5.6% in Q3 as Wall Street job losses reduced demand for real estate in the New York borough across the East River from lower Manhattan. The median sale price for a home in Brooklyn fell to $510,000 from $540,000 a year earlier. The number of sales tumbled 38% to 2,298.” (Bloomberg, Oct. 16) 

Eagle County Bankers See Slowing Economy, Strong Recovery. Eagle County, Colorado: “County Assessor Mark Chapin: In 2006, there were 859 sales of single-family homes, compared to 300 so far this year. Sales prices of homes have dropped but not significantly — the median sales price for homes in the county is $775,000.” (Vail Daily, Oct. 16) 

Wilmington-Area Home Sales Continued Decline Last Month. North Carolina: Wilmington Regional Association of Realtors: “Wilmington Home sales totaled 365 in September, down from 418 in August and 433 in September 2007… The slowest September since 2002… and down by more than half from the September, 2005. Declines were 15% y/o/y… Average days… on the market jumped to 114 days in September from 85 in September 2007. The average price of homes sold fell to $235,068 in September from $271,598 in August and $272,828 in September 2007.” (Star News Online, Oct. 16) 

State Home Prices Expected To Continue Slide In 2009. “California Association of Realtors: Housing prices are expected to decline in much of California next year, but sales of existing homes will continue to ramp up… The Golden State's median price will fall 6% next year to $358,000 compared with a projected median of $381,000 for this year. Sales for 2009 are projected to increase 12.5% to 445,000 units, compared with 395,600 units (projected) in 2008.” (San Gabriel Valley Tribune, Oct. 15) 

Home Prices Dropped Across Region In September. “Long Island MLS: Median home-closing prices dropped across the region in September. The most dramatic dip was in Queens, where the median closing price last month was $400,000, down 9% from $440,000 a year ago. Suffolk's median price was $360,000, a 7% decrease from $388,000 in September 2007. In Nassau, the median price was $446,000, 6% lower compared with $475,000 from a year ago.” (Newsday, Oct. 15) 

Sales, Price Cuts, And Purchases. NY: “Author James Frey… slashed $500,000 off the price of his condo at 505 Greenwich Street [to] $4.5 million. Meanwhile, the founder of finance software company FNX Limited, Farid Naib, paid $2.29 million for a seventh-floor loft at 288 West Street. Nascar Chairman Briance France sold his "staff studio" at 15 Central Park West for $1.2M after selling his primary condo there for $18.7M last month. And, real estate investors Cortney and Robert Novogratz cut the price of their townhouse at 5 Centre Market Place to $13.85M after listing it for $18M in April.” (The Real Deal, Oct. 14) 

Denver Home Prices Down 14.5 Percent. “Mortgage servicer Integrated Asset Services LLC: The price of single-family homes in the Denver area has dropped 14.5% in the past year... Of seven Colorado counties… only Elbert had an improvement over last August’s [median home] prices. Homes in Elbert were selling for 8.5% more. The [price] decline was steepest in Denver, at 23.2%.” (Denver Business Journal, Oct. 14) 

Orange Median Home Prices Plunge From $335,000 To $276,500 “Orange County [NY] Association of Realtors: “Orange County single-family home prices plunged 17.5% in September as the erosion of local housing values picked up speed. The median sale price of single-family homes was $276,500 in September, down from $335,000 in September 2007. Through the first nine months of the year, prices are down 7% compared to the same period in 2007.” (Times Herald Online, Oct. 14)

                                                                 

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