'Surprise' jump in existing home sales

Money.CNN.com is 'surprised' to see a jump in December's existing home sales and reports that western states saw a notable surge. My own experience saw this coming in our local markets. Buyers are getting off the fence and are looking for bargains. There are definitely bargains to be found and a crucial part of the recovery process is that overpriced properties are re-priced and sold at the lower prices. I think one of the most important factors in this jump was the result of lower interest rates.

One interesting side note from my own limited research: lower price homes closer to the urban centers are doing the best. I looked specifically at the absorption rates at various price ranges in Salt Lake City vs the rest of the county and Orem vs. the rest of Utah County. The population/economic engine cities obviously have stronger real estate markets and are doing best at homes/condos priced under $250k. That part of that market has maintained pretty strong absorption and only suffered minimal drops in value through the market downturn.

More to come.