Home price sales data through October 2008 is now available for the GreatPlacesToRetire.com survey.
The stock market crash of the last two months has just added to the mortgage/credit confidence crisis. Average prices for new home sales and resales in our 99 top retirement cities are now down 6% from last year. Two-thirds of our surveyed cities have a loss compared to last year, with half of those cities showing double digit losses. Gulf Shores, AL down 33% and Park City, UT down 24% lead the pack down.
As grim as the news seems to be, there are cities that continue to buck the trend of lower home prices. Vail, CO is up 34% from '07. Hot Springs Village, AR (+21%) and Ocean City, NJ (+20%) are also red hot right now. Home prices in Vail started taking off in '06 and have not let up. Hot Springs Village prices are rebounding from a dip during 2007. Ocean City prices slumped during '06 and '07 but are making a comeback in '08. This popular coastal town bears watching given the recent Wall Street meltdown. You can check home price trends for these cities by clicking on the city link provided above.
State-wide, cities in Utah are down the most at 16%. Oregon (-13%) is next with all three cities down double digits. Florida and California are not far behind at -12%. Hanging in there is Washington (+3%) and Texas (+1.6%).
To end on a long-term, positive note. Home price declines have been all the news for the past 2+ years. People shouldn't soon forget the prior 8-10 years where home prices were on a major role. All in all, since 2001, home prices in the majority of our surveyed cities are up an annual average of over 6%. You may have been lucky enough to purchase a home in Prescott, AZ or Bellingham, WA where home prices have more than doubled since '01. Only three cities are in negative territory.
Check home prices back to 2001 for 99 of the top retirement towns and cities in the U.S., plus other key city data at GreatPlacesToRetire.com.
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