Chicago overtakes Detroit as the worst performing housing market: San Diego outperforms while Los Angeles hits a snag.

Jon Blogosphere, Economy, Market Commentary, Real Estate

The Case Shiller Index is one of the better long-term measures of housing price changes. It looks at repeat home sales so you know what you are tracking versus say an area where new home sales are jacking prices up while old crap shack stucco boxes lag the market. The Taco Tuesday crowd is obsessed with buying simply because they lack other investment options. Housing may or may not be a good deal. Housing in many areas of SoCal is absurdly overpriced. However, in many parts of the country it is a good (to great) deal. Yet all markets are not created equal. In the last month, Chicago was the worst performing housing market even edging out Detroit. Chicago is a good city but my lord do they have a political system that is fully twisted. Taxes in Chicago are nutty and the pension system has mega problems. Bottom line, buying a home in Chicago is risky given all of these long-term issues. And the market is taking notice. Let us look at the short-term best and worst performers.
The latest Case Shiller Data
I have many readers in the San Diego market asking me ‘why is San Diego doing so well?’ despite the building inventory in other parts of SoCal. The answer is largely embedded with the lack of growing inventory. Where places like Los Angeles and Orange County are seeing big jumps in inventory, this is simply not happening in San Diego. Since people are creatures of habit, are tied down by work commitments, or family and society pressure to buy, those feeling the itch to buy in their loins are going to do so regardless of market timing. People buy largely because of emotions. They also go broke because of emotions. Just watch some of the pathetic behavior exhibit on Canadian housing shows where people routinely jump off the financial cliff with a mortgage that means massive debt for most of their working lives. And somehow being in debt to a bank for 30 years is the pinnacle of financial success.
Let us look at the latest Case Shiller figures:

This post was published at Doctor Housing Bubble on OCTOBER 2, 2015.