The Real Estate Market is Up- or Prices Have Dropped Again. Will the Experts Make Up Their Minds?

Oh.... so many analysts, and even more opinions as to what the real estate market is doing, or not doing, or going to do. Read one report, and everything is rosy. Read another, and the market is worse off than it was nine years ago.

Up, down. Good, bad. Rosy, bleak. The "noise" is deafening.

There are (probably TOO) many companies and/or agencies besides the experts and analysts that report on the real estate market.  Do not trust everything that you read. Even the most seemingly reliable of sources do not get it right. Professionaly speaking,  I would consider the top three most reliable national real estate market sources as:

Case-Shiller, Realtor.org, and Zillow* (but only for its Zillow Home Forecast, and NOT for individual home values)

The Case Shiller indices comes out on the last Tuesday of every month and has a two month lag time.  S&P/Case Shiller  covers 20 MSA's (Metropolitan Statistical Areas).

Realtor.org has two reports that are of significance - The Pending Home Sales Index released on the fourth Thursday of the month- which is a forward indicator of properties scheduled to close, and the Existing Home Sale Report, which is  released on the fourth Wednesday of the month. Both reports are for the month prior.

Zillow does a great job of forecasting, although if you type in a homes address to obtain a value, there is a good possibility it will NOT be correct. They do disclaim a margin of error for individual home values, but again, their easy to understand and  substantive forecasts/reports are well researched and quite informative.

Bear in mind that while the national reports are relevant in large areas, real estate still is QUITE  hyper local.  I read a report today (that prompted me to write this article) where I could not believe what I saw- What one  organization calls mid-tier properties in various towns would be considered the LOW END in those towns. I won't call them on the carpet for it- they did their best. It's just plainly wrong. All of the data they included certainly looked like a lot of work, but I know full well that none of it is relevant. The shame is that unsuspecting readers will assume that the information is correct, and base VERY IMPORTANT decisions on that.

If you live in , or are intending to live in an area, look for a consistency in reporting by a local agent who has a good handle on the market. (Like me!)

We service Easton, Fairfield, Norwalk, Trumbull and Westport, as well as their surrounding areas, and our market reports are delivered weekly, with monthly , quarterly and annual recaps. Check our local town blogs for that towns market forecast, too.

When you want local expert reports, TheCTrealtyBlog.com is the place to go to get them. When you need a local expert realtor, we are here for you, too.  Just contact us when you're ready.

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Buying or Selling a Home in Fairfield County Connecticut? We'd love to represent you.

Feel free to email us here or visit our main  site at

www.CThomesAndRealEstate.com

If you have a question about buying or selling Real Estate  in Fairfield County, and are in need of representation, I invite you to contact me. I know the market like the back of my hand, know marketing inside and out, am a skilled negotiator- and I'd love to be on your side :) - Judy