Washington D.C. Area Tops Real Estate Market List

TRUCKEE, CA – Jan. 6, 2011 – Clear Capital (www.clearcapital.com) released its monthly Home Data Index™ (HDI) Market Report, reporting a year-over-year national price change in 2010 of -4.1 percent, and expects another -3.7 percent year-over-year change in 2011. The HDI Market Report provides the most current (through December 2010) and granular analysis of how local markets performed compared to the national trend in home prices, as well as a 12-month forecast of what to expect in 2011. “In terms of home prices, this past year has certainly been characterized by uncertainty,” said Dr. Alex Villacorta, senior statistician, Clear Capital. “Tax incentives and high levels of distressed sale activity had counter effects on home prices which contributed to the fragility of the markets.”
Strong Market Contenders
Major cities in the western Gulf states, and Washington, D.C. are least likely to see high dollar declines in home values. Washington, D.C. follows-up its strong performance in 2010 with an expected 6.5 percent year-over-year price change in 2011. The District will be an interesting market to watch this year, though, because while it’s unlikely employment will fall, these numbers have been tempered with the added uncertainty due to the freezing of federal salaries, effective Jan. 1, 2011.