It really is about location, location, location
I always tell people not to get too upset when they read that housing values are dropping quickly in Nevada, California or Michigan. That is, of course, unless they happen to live in Nevada, California or Michigan.
We’ve all heard the old saying that residential real estate is all about location, location, location. Well, that’s still true, even in the worst housing slump the industry has experienced in decades.
Just because housing prices are tanking in Florida, doesn’t mean they’re not holding their own in Oklahoma. Just because housing values have taken a beating in Las Vegas, doesn’t mean that they’re not on the rise in Montgomery, Ala.
A recent BusinessWeek story highlighted this. The story listed cities across the United States that saw real estate values drop the most and those that saw them jump the highest. Seems not everyone is suffering equally from the housing slump.
For example, home values in Palo Alto, Calif., rose 4.28 percent in 2008. The median housing value here is a sky-high $1.34 million. In Soledad, Calif., though, housing values plummeted 5.47 percent in 2008. In Westport, Conn., housing values rose 3.33 percent in 2008, and the median housing value stood at $1.022 million. In Waterbury, Conn., though, housing values fell a whopping 11.38 percent in 2008, and the median home value stood at just $146,276.
And don’t think that only wealthy communities enjoyed housing appreciation in 2008. In Utica, N.Y., housing values rose a stellar 7.58 percent in 2008, even though the median home value was just $91,539. And in Jacksonville, Ark., home values rose a solid 4.36 percent in 2008 in a community where the median housing value stands at a modest $95,455.
So, yes, the housing market on a whole is struggling. And home values in most major metropolitan areas are dipping. But keep in mind that not every home in every market is worthless. There are several communities across the country where home values are either on the rise or holding steady.
As that old saying goes, it’s all about location, location, location. That’s true now more than ever.
