Tuesday, October 27, 2009, 11:48am EDT
Atlanta Business Chronicle
Home prices in 20 U.S. markets, including Atlanta, rose in August, according to the latest S&P Case-Shiller home price index.
Atlanta home prices went up 1 percent from July to August. That follows a 2.3 percent rise from June to July in Atlanta.
However, home prices in Atlanta dropped 10.6 percent year-over-year in August.
Home prices nationwide were up 1 percent from the previous month on a seasonally adjusted basis. That follows a 1.2 percent increase in July.
However, prices in the 20 markets are down 11.3 percent, year-over-year.
As of August, average home prices across the U.S. were at similar levels to where they were in fall 2003, the report notes.
“While many of the markets remain down versus this time last year, the relative rate of decline has shown some real improvement,” noted David M. Blitzer, chairman of the Index Committee at Standard & Poor’s, in the report.
The first-time home buyer credit helped to boost sales. However, if the credit is allowed to expire by the end of November, “demand will take a hit — home sales will drop — and house prices will resume their downward course, brought down by the weight of rising foreclosures and rising unemployment rates,” noted Patrick Newport, a U.S. economist with IHS Global Insight.
“Our view is that home prices will drop another 5 percent from current levels, and will hit bottom in 2010,” he said in a news release.
