And the Good News Is...

November 20, 2008

It's getting to be more and more difficult to find good news on TV. Reporters seem to be reveling in stirring up as much "doom and gloom" news as they can – after all it's been proven that bad news sells better than good. Our addiction to news tickers and 24 hour coverage was solidified during horrific news events of the last decade. But there IS positive news to be found if you dig hard enough.

28 Metropolitan areas showed increases in median existing single-family home prices from the same quarter in 2007. Areas such as Elmira NY, Tulsa OK, Wichita KS and Urbana IL.

But even in areas where average home sales have dropped drastically, there is good news. Buyers who have been shut out of the home ownership market, are now finding that they can afford to buy. And they ARE buying. Three states where the ‘housing bubble' has burst are seeing some of the highest increases in sales. The largest sales gain during the third quarter was in Arizona, up 28.3 percent from the second quarter, followed by California which rose 28.1 percent and Nevada, up 26.2 percent. These areas have seen some of the strongest sales gains with some reports of multiple bidding.

And there's also good news for sellers. The typical seller purchased their home six years ago and is still experiencing net equity gains, even in today's depressed markets. The national increase in value since the third quarter of 2002 is 18.3 percent, which is a median gain of $31,000. Even with the current downward price distortion, 90 percent of metro areas are showing six-year price gains.

So while we are definitely in turbulent economic times, there is GOOD NEWS to be found if you look for it. Hopefully, some home buying incentives will be passed soon to stimulate even more home ownership. Lawrence Yun, the chief economist at the National Association of Realtors, said that, "A pattern of sharply higher sales in areas with large price declines is well established," Yun said. "Affordability conditions have consistently been a major factor in driving sales. Historically during recessions, buyers have responded to incentives and it's important for government to keep that in the forefront of stimulus decisions."

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Local Information for Tuscaloosa, AL

Latitude: 33.20654 -- Longitude: -87.534607

Other Area Cities: Northport Tuscaloosa

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Tuscaloosa is a city in west central Alabama in the southern United States. On the Black Warrior River, it is the seat of Tuscaloosa CountyGR6 and the fifth-largest city in Alabama with a population of 79,294 (2003 U.S. Census Bureau Estimate). Tuscaloosa is named after the Choctaw chieftain Tuskalusa (which means Black Warrior in that language), who battled and was defeated by Hernando de Soto in 1540 in the Battle of Mauvila. Tuscaloosa is known for its college sports - particularly University of Alabama athletics. In the 1925 football season, an underrated University of Alabama Crimson Tide football team played in the first of many Rose Bowls, defeating Washington 20 - 19 and giving the Tide the first of 12 national championships. The Tide's 12 national titles tie the University of Notre Dame for the most in college football history. The Crimson Tide also has the most SEC championships, the most bowl appearances and the most bowl wins of any team in college football. ROLL TIDE! -- Source: Wikipedia.com

Alabama 2000 Census Population Profile Map

	Tuscaloosa	Alabama	United States
Population	77,906	4,447,100	281,421,906
Median age	28.4	35.8	35.3
Median age for Male	27.5	34.4	34
Median age for Female	29.3	37.2	36.5
Households	31,381	1,737,080	105,480,101
Household population	69,804	4,332,380	273,643,273
Average household size	2.22	2.49	2.59
Families	16,931	1,215,968	71,787,347
Average family size	2.93	3.01	3.14
Housing units	34,857	1,963,711	115,904,641
Occupied units	31,381	1,737,080	105,480,101
Vacant units	3,476	226,631	10,424,540

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