Real Estate Home Prices to Cool in 2006 – Soft

Real Estate Home Prices to Cool in 2006 – Soft Landing Projected for Current Record Housing Boom

The five-year boom in existing and new housing sales in many U.S. housing markets is expected to cool in 2006 but final results should still be second best in history, according to projections by top industry economists. National average home price appreciation is also expected to slow from an unsustainable rate of 12.7% this year to about 5.0% next year.

Existing home sales, increasing 4.8% this year to a record 7.11 million, are projected to decline 3.5% to 6.86 million in 2006. New home sales will increase 8.0% to 1.3 million this year and are expected to decline 4.6% to 1.97 million next year.

We are in the process of setting a fifth consecutive annual record for both existing and new home sales, said David Lereah, chief economist for the National Association of Realtors (NAR). The market will be coming off a five-year boom and will experience a soft landing next year. An uptrend in mortgage interest rates will cause some slowing of the sales pace but we forecast 2006 to be the second highest year on record. Housing will continue to support the overall...