Snappy newsletters. Simple Facebook sharing. Spirited comments. Sweet features are waiting… GET THEM NOW!

Hot on Facebook

Uproar After NC State Agent 'Fixes' Girl's Lunch Preschooler has to eat chicken nuggets instead of mom's meal »

March Home Sales, Prices Fall

Buyers can't get loans, or are awaiting bigger price drops

By Kevin Spak, Newser Staff

Posted Apr 22, 2008 10:02 AM CDT

(Newser) – Prices on existing homes fell in March, but buyers stayed away, either unable to get loans, or betting on yet bigger drops, Bloomberg reports. Sales dropped 2%, to an annual rate of 4.93 million, as the median price fell to $200,700 from $217,400 last year. The number of available homes meanwhile swelled by 40,000, exacerbating supply problems.

"There still is an imbalance in the existing housing market that needs to be corrected through lower inventories and higher sales," said one Lehman Brothers economist. "As long as the housing market remains weak we think the economy will remain weak as well."

Home for sale signs line a street of a new subdivision in Cascade Locks, Ore., Wednesday, April 9, 2008. (AP Photo/Don Ryan)

A house for sale at a reduced price is seen in Albany, N.Y., Tuesday, March 25, 2008. Home prices in many cities continued to plunge by record levels in January as sellers cut their asking bids and rising... (AP Photo/Mike Groll)

A sign noting a reduction in price tops the sale placard outside an existing home on the market in south Denver in this Feb. 17, 2008 file photo. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski, file)

« Prev« Prev | Next »Next » Slideshow

To report an error on this story, notify our editors.

More Newser Stories

$26B Mortgage Settlement a 'Modest' Help: Experts

Many struggling homeowners not covered in deal

(NEWSER) - The $26 billion mortgage settlement announced yesterday will be a boon for some—but the terms of the deal leave many homeowners out in the cold. Recipients of loans owned by the Federal Housing Administration, for instance, won't directly benefit from the settlement; nor will those with mortgages held by private investors, the New York Times reports. Millions of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac loans—about half of America's mortgages—aren't part of the plan, either. More»

Banks Ink $26B Deal to Help 2M Homeowners

49 states sign on to deal with nation's top 5 banks

(NEWSER) - America's five biggest banks have hammered out a $26 billion settlement for their role in causing the mortgage meltdown, reports the Wall Street Journal . The deal—the biggest of its kind since 1998's $206 billion settlement with the tobacco industry—was hammered out during almost a year of negotiations between the banks and all 50 state attorneys general, reports the New York Times . The money will go to some 2 million homeowners affected by the crisis. More»

Home Prices Dive, Indicate Gloomy '12

Case-Shiller Home Price Index reverses 5 months of gains

(NEWSER) - After five straight months of gains through August, many market watchers had hoped home prices were finally trekking northward for good. No such luck: According to the just-released S&P/Case-Shiller Index, home prices fell in 19 of the nation’s 20 largest cities from September to October, bringing the index 3.4% lower than it was at this time last year. And while prices usually trend downward in the fall, the LA Times believes these figures portend a weak market in 2012. More»

Downturn Slams Gen-Xers; Boomers, Not So Much

Housing prices are the real culprit

(NEWSER) - The recession is hurting most of us, but Gen X has taken the brunt of it—thanks to housing prices that fell off a cliff 5 years ago and are still tumbling. Consider the 30-year-old Gen-Xer who bought a house in 2006 for $250,000. That value has now dropped by a third, hurting any chance of a comfortable retirement. Compare that to a Baby Boomer of the same age who bought a house in 1991 for $100,000: Sure, it's lost value in the downturn, but its median selling price is still $170,000. More»

British Homes Now Cheaper Than Ritzy London Parking

There's a disconnect betwee London and the rest of the country

(NEWSER) - Much like the US, Britain is seeing home prices plummet—well, except in London, that is. There, prices are soaring, thanks largely to foreign buyers. How bad is it? So bad that the average price of a home in the country as a whole has now fallen to around $260,878, Ian Cowie of the Telegraph reports, while primo parking spots in London can demand more than $320,000. More»

NEWS FROM OUR PARTNERS

What is Newser?

Face it: there's too much news. At Newser, we choose the most thought-provoking and entertaining stories from hundreds of US and international sources and reduce them to a headline, picture, and two paragraphs. And we do it 24/7—you can come back morning, noon, night (and in between) for something new that matters. Read less, know more.

Learn more »

Partnering with: Slate

View Newser on the mobile website

March Home Sales, Prices Fall

Buyers can't get loans, or are awaiting bigger price drops

OTHER STORIES ON OUR RADAR

housing market • home prices • housing crisis • existing home sales • economy

MOST POPULAR STORIES

[ By Views ]

[ By Comments ]

More Newser Stories

$26B Mortgage Settlement a 'Modest' Help: Experts

Many struggling homeowners not covered in deal

Banks Ink $26B Deal to Help 2M Homeowners

49 states sign on to deal with nation's top 5 banks

Home Prices Dive, Indicate Gloomy '12

Case-Shiller Home Price Index reverses 5 months of gains

Downturn Slams Gen-Xers; Boomers, Not So Much

Housing prices are the real culprit

British Homes Now Cheaper Than Ritzy London Parking

There's a disconnect betwee London and the rest of the country

About Us

Site

Newser By Users

Community

Site Maps

Tools

More News

What is Newser?

March Home Sales, Prices Fall

Buyers can't get loans, or are awaiting bigger price drops

Bookmark & Share

OTHER STORIES ON OUR RADAR

housing market • home prices • housing crisis • existing home sales • economy

MOST POPULAR STORIES

[ By Views ]

[ By Comments ]

More Newser Stories

$26B Mortgage Settlement a 'Modest' Help: Experts

Many struggling homeowners not covered in deal

Banks Ink $26B Deal to Help 2M Homeowners

49 states sign on to deal with nation's top 5 banks

Home Prices Dive, Indicate Gloomy '12

Case-Shiller Home Price Index reverses 5 months of gains

Downturn Slams Gen-Xers; Boomers, Not So Much

Housing prices are the real culprit

British Homes Now Cheaper Than Ritzy London Parking

There's a disconnect betwee London and the rest of the country

About Us

Site

Newser By Users

Community

Site Maps

Tools

More News

What is Newser?