Home Prices Fell in March Despite Low Sales Inventory: Survey

A surge in homebuyer traffic and waxing inventory failed to prevent home prices from declining in March, according to one survey.

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Polling 2,500 agents for their monthly HousingPulse Tracking Survey, ""Campbell Surveys"":http://www.campbellsurveys.com/ and ""_Inside Mortgage Finance_"":http://www.insidemortgagefinance.com/ found Monday that home prices for non-distressed properties slid 5.7 percent year-over-year, alongside 2.5 percent for move-in ready REOs over the same time frame.

Prices for short sales plummeted 14.3 percent, with prices for move-in ready REOs falling by 2.5 percent.

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The survey noted that prices fell despite substantially higher activity from first-time homebuyers, homeowners, and investors, which increased from last year's federal homebuyer tax credits.

""Agents responding to our survey say that homeowners with well-maintained properties in good locations are very reluctant to list at today's prices,"" Thomas Popik, research director with Campbell Survey, said in a statement. ""That's why inventory is low-and also why forced REO and short sales are such a big proportion of the remaining market.""

The _HousingPulse_ survey faulted a higher share of distressed properties, citing 47.7 percent in increases for the Distressed Property Index, which marks the twenty-fifth consecutive month that the index has stayed above 40 percent.

""With nearly half of the market being distressed, we're a long way from a return to a normal market,"" he added.

Short sales continue to drive growth in the share of distressed properties for the housing market. Short sale transactions increased to 19.9 percent from 17.8 percent over the past six months.

The survey quoted one real estate agent from Delaware as citing ""a significant increase in the number of short sales and foreclosures on the market,"" with sales up 29 percent year-over-year and pending-home sales by 55 percent.