- theMReport.com - https://themreport.com -

Asking Prices Increase, Discounts on the Decline

Asking prices on homes improved on a yearly basis for the seventh straight month in November, according to the latest ""report"":http://www.fncrpi.com/ViewFile.aspx?ref=pr_58 (RPI) from ""FNC, Inc."":http://www.fncinc.com/

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The median home asking price in November was $190,000, mostly flat from October. However, that figure stands 6.1 percent above its year-ago level. November's year-over-year increase was the fourth largest one this year and the biggest gain since July (which saw a 10.6 percent bump in prices compared to a year ago).

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As of November, prices are up 8.6 percent year-to-date.

The report also shows a steady improvement in liquidity conditions throughout 2012--meaning the gap between asking prices and selling prices is closing, even as prices rise. The average home sale in October closed at 6.6 percent below the asking price, a year-over-year improvement from 9.7 percent. The last time asking price discounts were so low was in August 2007, according to FNC.

What's more, median annualized home appreciation at re-sale (a measure of appreciation during the holding period) continues to hold near zero--that is, breaking even--and is trending toward positive growth for the first time since 2008. So far, the 2012 average for holding-period price appreciation is -0.7 percent, the highest it's been in four years.

The median time on market for a home sold in October was 147 days, unchanged on both a monthly and yearly basis. However, the first eight months of 2012 all showed declines in days on market, meaning sales pace is picking up.