Can 1,400 residential brokers be wrong?

Seventy-seven percent of real estate professionals think home prices will either stay the same or decrease in the next six months across the U.S.

That's what  HomeGain, based in Emeryville, CA, discovered in its first quarter 2010 Home Prices Survey just released. HomeGain says it provides online marketing programs that connect real estate agents with homebuyers and sellers

More specifically, 48 percent of those surveyed think prices will stay the same, and 29 percent think prices will decrease, DSNews.com reports.

That leaves just 23 percent who believe prices will increase in the next six months.

In comparison, the first quarter 2009 survey results indicated that only 11 percent of agents and brokers thought prices would increase.

Of the remaining 89 percent, 53 percent expected prices to decrease and 36 percent thought prices would stay the same.

Louis Cammarosano,  HomeGain general manager, states,  "In the first quarter survey many agents and brokers expressed concern over five factors that could potentially adversely impact home prices:

"Rising interest rates, expiration of the homebuyer tax credit, persistent unemployment, continued foreclosures, and the release of shadow inventory held by the banks."

Real estate professionals in Minnesota appear to be the least optimistic about home prices.

According to the survey, 82 percent of Minnesota respondents believe prices will go down in the next six months.

The most positive real estate professionals, though, are in Texas, where 41 percent of those surveyed think home prices will go up.

As for homebuyers' views on prices, 63 percent of the survey respondents said their homebuyer clients think homes for sale are overpriced.

But the opposite was true for clients selling their home. Of the agents and brokers surveyed, 77 percent indicated that homeowners think their home is worth more than the recommended listing price, DSNews.com reports.

In response to these varying opinions, Joan Wachter, a survey respondent from San Mateo, CA, said, "Buyers and sellers should look at sold comparables in the areas they are interested in, going back three months for information on current market trends.

"Economic flux should be factored into today's values."  

---

Click Here To See Prior News Posts By This Contributor »