Seattle Times business reporter Eric Pryne quoted me yesterday in his article about the affordability index, and as I was reading through the comments posted at the Seattle Times website, I noticed an awful lot of misconceptions about what the affordability index is, and what it tells us. So, I thought maybe it would be…
Case-Shiller Tiers: High Tier Flat, Low & Mid Tiers Inch Upward
Let’s check out the three price tiers for the Seattle area, as measured by Case-Shiller. Remember, Case-Shiller’s “Seattle” data is based on single-family home repeat sales in King, Pierce, and Snohomish counties. Note that the tiers are determined by sale volume. In other words, 1/3 of all sales fall into each tier. For more details…
Case-Shiller: Seattle Home Prices Bump Up Slightly Again in June
Let’s make our regularly scheduled monthly check on the Case-Shiller Home Price Index. According to June data, Up 0.4% May to June. Down 0.3% May to June (seasonally adjusted) Down 16.1% YOY. Down 22.2% from the July 2007 peak Last year prices fell 0.2% from May to June (not seasonally adjusted) and year-over-year prices were…
Tacoma Condo Project Foreclosure Auction Reveals Grim Reality
How bad is the condo market in Tacoma? Pretty bad. Recall this article from June: Tacoma Luxury Condo Project Headed for Foreclosure The Esplanade, a nine-story condominium on the west side of the near-downtown Thea Foss Waterway, has until Aug. 21 to escape from the imminent foreclosure, said sources close to the project who were…
Elizabeth Warren: We’re Not out of the Woods
This is a few weeks old, but it’s definitely worth watching if you haven’t yet. Elizabeth Warren, chair of the Congressional Oversight Panel (which was created to oversee TARP), has some frank words about the current state of the banks: Here are a few transcribed excerpts. Scarborough: “Are we out of the woods when it…