Home Prices Grow at Half of Predicted Pace
US home prices climbed just 0.3% in January versus the previous month, disappointing economists who had forecast 0.6% gains. The Federal Housing Finance Agency report released today reflects a housing market increasingly different than in its recessionary days when investors boosted prices as they clamored for foreclosed properties. Fewer of those distressed homes are on the market now, and traditional buyers lack the firepower to make up for the institutional losses. Investors made 21% of home buys in February 2014 compared to just 14% last month. Prices were up 5.1% from last January and down 3.7% from the March 2007 peak.
The West Coast experienced the biggest gain, 7.2%, while the Mid-Atlantic (New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania) brought up the rear at 1.7%. [Bloomberg]
