Home Prices Rebound as Tax-Credit Expiration Looms - BusinessWeek

A national average of home prices increased 1.6% from June to July, according to the S&P/Case-Shiller report

By Phil Mintz

Is the home price recovery real or being artificially supported by the $8,000 first-time home buyer's tax credit that's scheduled to expire at the end of November?

That's one of the questions being raised by the Standard & Poor's/Case-Shiller home price report for July, issued Sept. 29. Home prices increased 1.6% from June to July in the 20 metro markets tracked by the report, though they are still down 13.3% from a year ago. It was the third straight month of price increases for the 20-market average, as well as a narrower 10-city composite.

"The rate of annual decline in home price values continues to decelerate and we now seem to be witnessing some sustained monthly increases across many of the markets," David M. Blitzer, chairman of the index committee at Standard & Poor's, said in a news release. "The two composites and all metro areas are showing an improvement in the annual rates of return, as seen through a moderation in their annual declines."



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