New statistics released Tuesday by the home data company RealtyTrac show home prices were up 13 percent nationally last month.
In Phoenix and Arizona they were up, but at a considerably lower rate of 6 percent. That compares to 28 percent last May.
RealtyTrac Vice President Daren Blomquist says while it may not sound like it, that’s actually good news for most Phoenix residents, because the higher rate is not sustainable.
“That would just be creating another bubble in the housing market. So I think that this is expected and it’s actually, it’s probably not good news for everybody in the market but it is good news for the overall market," Blomquist said.
Blomquist says the lower increases in the median home price are not good for people trying to regain the equity in their homes, because it means it will take longer to accomplish that.
In the next six months, Blomquist says home price appreciation in Phoenix will likely flatten out in the 6 percent to 10 percent range, a pace he says can be sustained over the long haul.
Blomquist also said the number of homes being sold in the Valley was also down last month.
“A lot of the inventory that was available there was on the lower end and now you still have um low inventory, even in the higher ranges because many of those people in the higher price ranges in Phoenix are in a situation where they do have that negative equity and are still waiting out the market to recover enough so that they are ready and able to list their homes for sale," he said.
RealtyTrac says the median price of a home in Phoenix last month was $180,000, with the median price of a distressed home at $144,000.