Trulia: Asking Prices Rise Most in One Month Since Beginning of Recovery

• February 5, 2013

by Shilpi Paul

Courtesy of Trulia Trends.

Asking home prices continue to rise, even during the typically slow winter months, indicating the growing strength of the national housing market, reported Trulia on Tuesday. Prices rose 0.9 percent between December and January, the biggest monthly increase since the recovery began, revealed Trulia’s latest Price and Rent Monitor.

On an annual basis, January asking prices rose 5.9 percent and 0.3 percent quarter-over-quarter, without seasonal adjustment. In the DC area, prices rose by 6.2 in one year, and 0.9 percent quarter-over-quarter.

Compared to the rest of the nation, rent increases in the region have slowed notably. Asking rents in the DC area are up 2.6 percent annually, compared to a 4.1 percent increase nationwide.

“Rent gains are slowing down because of more supply, not less demand,” explains Jed Kolko, Trulia’s Chief Economist. “Many of the multi-unit buildings that have been under construction over the past two years are now coming onto the market. Renters in San Francisco, Seattle, and Denver are starting to get a touch of relief, even though rising prices might put homeownership out of their reach.”

For more stats and analysis, click here.

A full explanation of Trulia’s methodology can be found here, but in short, the Price and Rent Monitors compare current asking prices and asking rents year-over-year and quarter-over-quarter, adjusting for seasonal swings.

This article originally published at http://dc.urbanturf.com/articles/blog/trulia_asking_prices_rise_most_in_one_month_since_recovery_began/6609