Pockets of Prosperity Shine
Amidst Real-Estate Gloom

By LAUREN BAIER KIM
March 14, 2007

Here's a look at what's new in real-estate markets across the U.S. from around the Web. (Some links may require registration or subscriptions.)

Worst yet to come in Michigan

Hit by a double-whammy of an ailing auto-entrenched economy and a sagging housing market, many Michigan homeowners are finding themselves unable to afford their homes, according to an article by the Muskegon Chronicle. "Their only option may be to leave their house and turn it over to a mortgage company with the hope they can become a homeowner again in the future, when things are better," one local housing expert quoted by the paper says. The state was the only in the U.S. to see home prices drop in 2006, the article says. Michigan's housing market, which was skipped over by the U.S. housing boom, hasn't bit bottom yet, the Chronicle says. The number of homes sold dropped from 137,069 in 2005 to 118,407 in 2006, while the average selling price fell from $153,297 in 2005 to $149,753 in December 2006, the article says.

Single-family home sales spike in Maui

The median price for existing single-family homes slid in Hawaii's Maui in February, down from $669,500 in February 2006 to $645,000 last month, a Honolulu Advertiser article says. Also in February, sales of previously owned single-family homes rose 83% from 12 months before to their highest point in more than 10 years, the Advertiser says. The data suggests that buyers and sellers are finding "common ground in a healthy market," one local real-estate expert is quoted by the newspaper as saying. Meanwhile, condo sales slipped 42% from a year earlier, with the median price rising over a year's period from $430,100 to $560,000 the article says.

Steady market in Sioux Falls

Despite a higher inventory of homes for sale, sellers in Sioux Falls, S.D., typically get 98% of their listing prices for their properties, according to an article by the Argus Leader. Sales hit a record high of 3,600 homes sold in 2006, five homes above 2005's total, and prices rose more than 2% between 2005 and 2006, the article says. Residential properties priced at above $450,000 tend to sit on the market -- about nine to about 20 months currently -- but less expensive homes are selling more rapidly, the Leader says. Homes priced between $150,000 and $200,000 only take 1.5 months to sell, down from 7.3 months a year ago, the newspaper says.

Land shortage fuels sales in Missoula

Confined by public lands that can't be developed and located in an area marked by steep hills, Missoula, Mont., has seen median home prices within the city limits increase from $185,000 in 2005 to $205,000 in 2006, according to an article by the Missoulian. Much of the increase stems from soaring lot prices, which jumped about 25% from $75,900 in 2003 to $95,000 in 2006, the newspaper says. A lack of buildable land has helped to inflate prices by putting a crimp on local construction, the paper says. "It artificially kept us from getting into the problems a lot of the rest of the country did," a local developer is quoted as saying.

Condos hit Raleigh's skyline

A flood of new condo construction has hit downtown Raleigh, N.C., where the area's stock of 450 units is expected to increase to 1,000 within two years and possibly more than 2,000 by 2011, says a News & Observer article. Along with the surge in new condominium construction has come a jump in median condo prices, which rose from $257,000 to $315,500, or 23%, last year, the newspaper says. Out-of-state investors, young professionals and empty nesters are buying these units, the News & Observer says, partly spurred by Raleigh's new entertainment and dining options. However, while the condo market looks healthy, there have been ominous signs: a few developers have postponed or completely canceled construction plans, the paper says.