Moneywatch: S. Florida Home Values Down Nearly 13 Percent
MIAMI (CBS4) - South Florida homeowners may one to have a stiff drink or two before they read the next sentence.
Home values in the area fell nearly 13 percent in the first three months of this year, compared to the same period last year, according to real estate tracker Zillow.com.
According to the Seattle-based website, this year's first quarter drop in home values (12.8 percent) was the worst since 2008. Nationally, home values fell on average 8.2 percent from a year ago; down nearly 55 percent from their peak values five years ago.
In South Florida, one out of every two homes is worth less than what is owed on them.
Zillow estimates that considering the pace of price declines nationally, the housing market will probably not hit bottom later this year, rather 2012 at the earliest. As for South Florida, the website says we won't hit bottom until sometime after the national market bottoms out.
