DQ News reported a few days ago about the current status of the double dip, and uses a little humor while doing so.
What I find completely hilarious (and true!) is that the article deems the ebb and flow of home prices as the “Catfish Recovery.”
You laugh, but think about it. As the article references, a catfish is a bottom dweller that moves slow, feeds off of the bottom of a lake or river, then heads up to the surface, then back down, all the while bobbing up and down without a clear direction. Sounds like some investors I know!
For months we have been saying that that we are seeing prices continue to go down. But that isn’t true anymore, it really depends on the area and the price range. For buyers looking in the $550k and under range I am seeing more catfish-like effects with prices; the upper end ($850k and above) seems to be holding steady, probably due in part to low inventory.
Overall inventory has dropped in the past month (down by 1.7%), which is the first reduction since November 2010. Distressed properties continue to dominate the market, but this is also decreasing. So while national readings indicate a .93% increase in price, it is important that you look hyper-locally to see what a particular neighborhood is experiencing.