We now have a complete home price history for 2011 for our 99 great places to retire in the U.S. Time for what is turning out to be an annual post to our blog.
In general, home prices are not staging a comeback. Only 24 of our 99 great places saw an increase in home prices in 2011. State-wide, Texas and North Carolina are the bright spots, each with four cities with positive gains in 2011. Every city in California is down, South Lake Tahoe hit the hardest with a loss of 18% in average home price. Key West (+9%) and Boulder (+5%) are the lone positives in two states, Florida and Colorado, with a large group of cities in our retirement city survey. All Arizona cities are down. Average prices are down in most retirement destinations in South Carolina, Georgia, Oregon, Washington, Nevada, New York, Tennessee, Massachusetts and Arkansas.
Prices in college town destinations are down. Cities on the coasts or near large lakes and rivers are also down. Cities in warm climes are hurting, if it is a warm and dry place like the desert west, then you are really hurting. Cities in the mountains or just in a cool place with lots of precipitation are maintaining their prices.
The housing market in a good part of the country is still depressed. As I have blogged since 2009, for those in the market it is a great time to make that retirement or vacation home purchase (boy, are we glad we didn't buy in '09). Mortgage rates are still low and may stay that way for some time. Get out there and find that great place in the mountains, on the golf course, near the alma mater or even in the desert.
GreatPlacesToRetire.com provides MLS links, city blogs and the latest city data on home sales prices, air quality, water quality, medical care, recreation, crime and more for 99 top retirement cities and towns in the nation. Use GreatPlacesToRetire.com to help you make an informed decision for that retirement home, second home or vacation home acquisition.
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