<FONT color=blue>Online Extra</FONT>: The Housing Market By The Numbers

Editor’s note: PCT examined the slumping housing market and its impact on PCOs in the January cover story “Housing Horrors.” Here’s a look at states with the most foreclosures, existing home sales data and other statistics about the housing market.

States with the highest number of foreclosure filings – Oct. 2007

1. Nevada
2. California
3. Florida
4. Ohio
5. Georgia
6. Michigan
7. Colorado
8. Arizona
9. Indiana
10. Illinois

Source: RealtyTrac

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States with gains in existing-home sales (3Q 2006 – 3Q 2007)

1. North Dakota - 2.9%
2. Vermont – 0.8%

Sales of existing homes by region (3Q 2006 – 3Q 2007)

1. Northeast – 7.3% decrease
2. Midwest – 10.8% decrease
3. South – 14.3% decrease
4. West – 21.5 % decrease

Markets with largest single-family home price increases (3Q 2007)

1. Bismarck, N.D. – 15.1 %
2. Salt Lake City, Utah – 14.1 %
3. Yakima, Wash. – 13.6 %

Markets with strongest existing home price increases (3Q 2006 – 3Q 2007)

 Northeast
1. Binghamton, N.Y. – 11.4%
2. Reading, Pa. – 7.0%
3. Atlantic City, N.J. – 6.2%

Midwest
1. Bismarck, N.D. – 15.1%
2. Green Bay, Wis. – 7.2%
3. Akron, Ohio – 6.9%
4. Gary / Hammond, Ind. – 6.7%

South
1. Charlotte / Gastonia / Concord, N.C. – 11%
2. Beaumont / Port Arthur, Texas – 10.2%
3. Corpus Christi, Texas – 7.6%

West
1. Salt Lake City, Utah – 14.1%
2. Yakima, Wash. – 13.6%
3. San Jose / Sunnyvale / Santa Clara, Ca. – 9.4%
4. San Francisco / Oakland / Freemont – 8.6%

Source: National Association of Realtors (released 11/21/07)

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Housing Starts Fall 3.7 Percent in November

WASHINGTON — U.S. housing starts fell 3.7 percent in November, with construction of single-family homes sliding to the lowest level in more than 16 years as builders scrambled to cope with a deep drop in sales.
Home building projects started fell to an annual rate of 1.187 million units, the Commerce Department said on Tuesday in a report that was in line with expectations on Wall Street.

Starts on single-family homes tumbled 5.4 percent to an annual pace of 829,000 units, the lowest since April 1991. It was the eighth straight monthly drop in single-family starts.

In addition, permits for future building slipped 1.5 percent to their lowest level since June 1993.