Month: August 2023

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We’re Keepin’ It Local with Debbie’s Artistry! She creates beautiful coasters, serving trays, keychains, and more!

It all started in 2020 when owner Debbie Williams was let go from her job in the hotel industry. During a time of uncertainty and isolation, her love for art became her outlet.

She started out creating coasters and bookmarks, and as time passed, she added more products. She now offers coasters, wine stoppers, serving trays, cutting boards, and other accessories such as keychains, magnets, and bookmarks. She also does floral preservation pieces for weddings and funerals.

For more information, visit DebbiesArtistry.com. You can also find her products at the Maker and Merchant store in Citrus Park Town Center and at Toscano Interiors in Clearwater.

Source: abcactionnews.com

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While enjoying my daily scroll, I encountered a question, “What conspiracy theory do you secretly believe but would never admit to your family or friends?” Here are the top-voted responses. To clarify, these are not documented facts but exciting reads.

1. Smartphones Are Always Listening and Watching

“My Smartphone watches and listens to me more than just ‘How would you rate your experience at The Cheesecake Factory?’ When it was off and in my pocket the entire meal,” said one. “I secretly believe it’s always on, always listening, and with constant monitoring.”

“As a related side note, I welcome the emergent AI Overseer that will be revealed in 10 years. My conscience is clear. I also love how the word conscience is a contraction of conscience.” Finally, another joked, “My phone listens to me better than my husband!”

2. Social Engineering Is Real

“That from television to the music industry, we are constantly socially engineered by the content we consume,” one person volunteered. “It’s called social conditioning. Read Musical Truths by Mark Devlin. That exposes the musical side of it.”

3. Aliens Are Real

“Aliens are real. I’m 100 percent certain some life exists in the universe, given the unfathomable size of it all. And I’m nearly 100 percent sure intelligent life exists. Whether they are within our range and live simultaneously is questionable.”

“But I will say there’s a non-zero chance the government knows something,” one responded. Another quoted, “Arthur C. Clarke. Two possibilities exist: either we are alone in the Universe, or we are not. Both are equally terrifying.”

4. Keeping College Unaffordable for Military Recruitment in America

“That America keeps college unaffordable to recruit people into the military. Or if not actively keeping it high priced, doing nothing to keep the prices down.”

“For example, if college became affordable, like in a modern-day European country, the army would lose more than half its soldiers,” someone replied. “One of the primary opponents of Biden’s loan forgiveness plan WAS the U.S. military for this exact reason, right?”

5. Big Salmonella in Collusion With Big Lettuce

“They report a salmonella or E-coli outbreak in romaine lettuce every time they have an abundance of iceberg lettuce and not enough romaine to get people to buy the other kind,” someone shared. Another joked, “Big Farma.”

6. Very Wealthy People Are Psychopaths

“Those VERY wealthy people, particularly politicians, are psychopaths that do terrible things that would send chills down your spine, for fun,” one answered.

“Having gross amounts of money and power gets boring eventually. And people that relentlessly pursue obscene wealth and power already exhibit psychopathic tendencies. Power corrupts. There are some Harvey Weinstein, and Jeffrey Epstein types out worldwide.”

7. Fishy News

“I think it’s fishy beyond belief that after the Occupy Wall Street movement, there was a MASSIVE increase in reports on gender vs. gender and race vs. race issues in all vital newspapers. It’s VERY convenient for the 1% that the plebs are fighting themselves instead.”

“I don’t think there are no issues with racism or sexism. It’s good that we’re talking about it. But it appears that the most significant media outlets don’t want us to talk about it. Instead, they want us to fight each other.”

8. Mark Zuckerberg Is Playing The Long Game

One person replied, “Mark Zuckerberg knows what he is doing and is playing a very long game. I think Meta and the Metaverse seem like such a detached conceit because he isn’t catering to the older generations with this shot anymore.”

“The Metaverse is for the six-year-olds with tablets right now. Mark wants them to grow up in his universe. They are the demographic that cares about graphics right now. But they will as they age, and Meta’s goal is probably to keep up with that. Create a whole generation wholly consumed in it.”

“It is a better bet than trying to cater to the older cynical people who have grown up with internet/Facebook 1.0 and can’t ever get an engrained feel for the next-gen form of connectedness.”

9. Celebrity Kid Names

Someone volunteered, “Celebrities name their kids’ crazy things, so they don’t release their real names to the public and paparazzi.” Someone added, “God, I hope that one is true.”

10. The Car Companies Colluded

“Car companies colluded to discontinue their small and affordable cars in America. It happened *very* rapidly, within a two-to-three-year span. Except for Mitsubishi,” someone said. Another shared, “I worked for one of the big three in the ’90s and ’00s.”

“They were constantly looking for ways to make small passenger cars profitable. It was part of my job. But the company I worked for couldn’t profit from small cars. But they made bank on trucks and SUVs. But I can tell you we lost money on most small cars.”

“So we kept assuming small cars were like a gateway for larger, profitable vehicles. But eventually, that made less and less marketing sense. If you don’t believe me, this was written about extensively in the automotive press in the early 00s.”

Source: Reddit.

Image Credit: Shutterstock – Denis Makarenko

Who is one actress you can never stand watching, no matter their role?  After polling the internet, these were the top-voted actresses that people couldn’t stand watching.

10 Actresses People Despise Watching Regardless of Their Role

These 7 Celebrities are Genuinely Good People

Photo Credit: Shutterstock.

We’ve all heard the famous adage that “no publicity is bad publicity,” and while it tends to be accurate, there are certainly exceptions. But what about those few stars who stay out of the limelight and get along without a hint of trouble? 

These 7 Celebrities are Genuinely Good People

Photo Credit: Shutterstock

Have you ever known someone and thought you liked them—until you learned about their hobbies? Then you get to know them and then you’re like, “Wow, red flag.” Well, you’re not alone.

These 10 Activities Are an Immediate Red Flag

Photo Credit: Shutterstock.

Some celebrities definitely seem to enjoy the limelight and keep working to stay in the public eye. While others quickly move out of the spotlight. Many of these actors and actresses stepped out of the spotlight to live a more private life without constant media pressures.

10 Celebrities That Made the Big Times Then Disappeared Off The Face of the Earth

Image Credit: Troma Entertainment

We’ve all been there – sitting through a movie that we can’t help but cringe at, but somehow it still manages to hold a special place in our hearts.

These 10 Terrible Movies Are Still People’s Favorites



About the Author



Source: financequickfix.com

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Before I delete the GRS forums, I’m moving the best posts here. Last month I shared Vintek’s introduction to mutual funds. Here he explains index funds.

In my previous discussion of mutual funds, I mentioned index funds:

Along came index funds, and this was hailed as the ultimate in investing. You’d invest not in just a basket of stocks, but in the entire market. Since the manager wasn’t required to do research and pick stocks (all he had to do was buy it all and hold it), his fee was reduced to a fraction of an actively managed fund’s fees (about 0.2%). Yes, you could have years of losses (2000, 2001 and 2002 were the most recent), but studies show that the market always recovered, even if some of the companies in the index didn’t. If you wanted put your investing on autopilot and be assured of a long-term (any 20 year period since the 1920s had an average gain of 10% per year) winner, this was the way to go.

That’s the basic introduction. Now let’s talk about what it all means.

What’s an index?
In most cases, an index is just a group of financial instruments (mostly stocks, but also bonds, REITs and other things) designed to represent something. The index is typically used as a baseline against which a person’s investments can be measured. For example, the S&P 500 is supposed to be the 500 biggest stocks on the market, per Standard & Poor. The DOW is a collection of 30 stocks that are supposed to represent American industry as a whole. The Wilshire 5000 is supposed to represent all of the stocks currently being traded over the stock market. Ditto the Russell 3000. Interestingly enough, the Russell 3000 is broken into two parts: the Wilshire 1000 (kind of the Wilshire counterpart to the S&P 500), composed of the biggest 1000 stocks on the market, and the Wilshire 2000, composed of everything else.

What’s an index fund?
An index fund is exactly what it sounds like. It’s a fund that’s designed to follow an index. For example, if you bought into an index fund that tracked the S&P 500, you’d be buying into every stock listed in the S&P 500. Because that fund covers the largest of the stocks (by capitalization) on the market, it would be considered a large-cap fund index fund. By contrast, a fund following the Russell 2000 would be considered a small-cap index fund. The really interesting thing is that the large caps stocks are so big that they overwhelm everything else by comparison. For example, if you singled out the companies that comprise the S&P 500, they would comprise about 70% of the Wilshire 5000! 70%!

What makes an index fund such a good choice?
Good question. Well, we know that the market always recovers from downturns and goes up in the long term. Stocks and (managed) funds don’t always recover. We know that if we hold an index fund, there won’t be a lot of trading because a manager won’t be jockeying for the best performing stocks. He’d just hold stocks according to the index. As a result, this keeps trading costs (and therefore expenses) on the fund low. Furthermore, an index fund is tax-efficient because it doesn’t trade much. If it doesn’t trade much, you won’t have to pay very much in capital gains taxes. Still, there is a small amount of trading every year, as most indexes are re-evaluated on an annual basis.

That’s it for now. In the future, I’ll talk a bit about market capitalization (big cap vs. mid-cap vs. small cap) and why it’s important to know the difference. I’ll also talk about what index funds I own and why I own them.

Thanks to Vintek for allowing me to repost this information.

Source: getrichslowly.org

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The excitement and bustle of the Northeast. The friendliness and livability of the Midwest. Pittsburgh is a city with a foot in each. It’s no longer the smoggy, industrial steel and coal city of the past. Today’s Pittsburgh is a gleaming city of high-tech jobs, beautiful parks and plentiful entertainment. It’s a modern city full of families and young professionals. But, is it pricey like the Northeast or affordable like the Midwest?

We dissected the Council for Community and Economic Research’s data for the cost of living in Pittsburgh for 2022. Also, we compared the overall cost of living for the city to the national average, as well as to similar Pennsylvania cities. Then, we analyzed the differences in prices from this time last year. And, broke down the numbers for several important economic and consumer categories. We also studied the costs for rent and real estate in Pittsburgh.

The overall cost of living for Pittsburgh is 99.8, with a score of 100 reflecting the national average. That means that the cost of living is just 0.2 percent below, making Pittsburgh an affordable large city. And it’s only getting cheaper. That’s a decrease in the cost of living of 4.41 percent a year ago.

Pittsburgh housing prices

Geographically Northeast but culturally Midwest, Pittsburgh rent prices straddle the line in cost. Prices remain relatively Midwestern low but have seen some Northeast-type increases.

A studio in Pittsburgh averages $1,420 a month. While the cheapest apartment type, it’s seen the steepest year-to-year increase, up 17 percent. A one-bedroom rents for $1,650 on average monthly, up 15 percent from last year. A two-bedroom leases for $1,986, up 7 percent from this time last year. With an increase of just 5 percent, three-bedroom units now average only $1,965, less than a two-bedroom.

Many of Pittsburgh’s most popular neighborhoods, of course, also carry the highest rent. South Oakland, on the Monongahela’s north shore, leases the highest rents of any neighborhood for studios and one-bedrooms. A studio will average $2,175 a month, with $2,375 for a single. The Strip District, along the Allegheny, offers studios at $1,800, one-bedrooms at $1,871 and two-bedrooms at $2,520, making it the second-most expensive neighborhood.

Downtown is the priciest area of Central Pittsburgh. Studios run $1,505, one-bedrooms average $1,800 and two-bedrooms $2,117. Studio units rent for $1,572 on the North Side overall, with singles at $1,960 and doubles at $2,303. On the South Side, studios come in at $1,560, one-bedrooms $1,810 and two-bedrooms $2,327.

The cost to buy a home in Pittsburgh is also up from last year. The median sale price of all homes in the city is $259,900. That’s a 4 percent year-to-year increase. Single-family homes are the most expensive, with a median of $260,000, up 4 percent. Townhomes are up the most of any type, an increase of 9.7 percent to $252,250.

Think outside the city

Those looking to save some money may consider other cities in the Pittsburgh region. These smaller cities and bedroom communities tend to offer lower rent prices. But, that comes with the cost of fewer amenities and a further drive into Pittsburgh. These are a few examples, based on two-bedroom unit rent:

Pittsburgh food prices

Pittsburgh is an eater’s paradise. It’s home to Heinz ketchup, the Big Mac and Klondike Bars. Homes have chipped chopped ham, fried zucchini and smiley cookies. But, are groceries here more expensive than elsewhere?

Yes, a bit. The cost of living for groceries in Pittsburgh is 5 percent above the national average. But the good news is that costs are down nearly 3.25 percent from last year.

Those figures, by comparison, are close to on par with other cities around the state. Scranton matches with an equal 5 percent above. Its sister city, Wilkes-Barre, is a bit higher at 8.9 percent over. Philadelphia, the priciest in the state, exceeds the national average by 18.4 percent. On the flip side, several other cities rank lower. Erie, to the northwest, is just one percent higher, while Allentown is 2.7 percent below the national average. Just across the border in Morgantown, WV, the index is a low 4.5 percent under.

Going grocery shopping

What do costs for individual grocery items in Steeltown look like? Pittsburghers love potatoes. Pierogis and fries on sandwiches and salads are staples. But there’s a cost. A five-pound bag of potatoes averages $4.64, over $1.30 more than the national average. Put that on your Primanti’s.

It’s also a meat-eaters town. Ribeye steak runs $16, and ground beef is $4.59. Sausage costs $4.93 and frying chicken $1.73. All those are per pound, and all are higher than the national average, as well. Put it all on some whole wheat bread, which sells for $4.19 a loaf, about 60 cents above the average.

On the other hand, a half-gallon of milk sells for $2.09, a dozen eggs at $1.41 and a five-pound bag of sugar runs $1.98. Those are all lower than the national average. But a two-liter Coke will set you back $2.32, 38 cents higher than the rest of the nation.

But maybe dining out or grabbing take-out is on the menu. The average meal at an inexpensive restaurant costs $15, on par with the national average. However, a three-course meal at a mid-range spot runs $57.50, $7.50 less than nationally. If quick and cheap is more your style, a combo meal at McDonald’s averages $9, a buck more than the rest of the country.

Pittsburgh utility prices

Pittsburgh doesn’t just have a deep history in the steel industry. Western Pennsylvania is also a historically-important fossil fuel region, for both coal and oil. It has always been a key energy region. But it’s also become pricey over the years.

Utility prices, in total, have a cost of living of 26 percent over the national average. And that marks a significant increase of 6.15 percent in the last year.

While all are above the national average, Pennsylvania cities like Erie, Scranton, Wilkes-Barre and Allentown are all cheaper than Pittsburgh and have all decreased in the last 12 months. Even expensive Philly only exceeds it by 12.2 percent.

Total monthly energy costs in Pittsburgh run $238. That’s significantly higher than the $171 average nationwide. Monthly charges for an average phone bill are $194. That’s six bucks more than nationally.

Pittsburgh transportation prices

Pittsburgh is a transportation hub. Known as the city of bridges, there are nearly 450, with 40 near downtown alone. Four vehicle tunnels pass through hills and under rivers, as well. And, up those hills, climb two of the world’s most famous funicular inclines.

The cost of living for transportation in Pittsburgh is 8.7 percent higher than the national average. On a positive note, that’s down nearly 3 percent from a year ago. Erie, Allentown and Wilkes-Barre all exceed the national average, but sit lower than Pittsburgh. Meanwhile, Philadelphia over-indexes by 13 percent and Scranton under-indexes by 1.4 percent. Erie and Allentown are both down over 8 percent from last year, with Scranton down over 12 percent.

Transportation options

Pittsburgh Regional Transit operates a light-rail system known as the “T,” split into three lines. It also runs four bus route lines, and the two funicular inclines. In 2017, PRT eliminated zone-based rates. All rides now cost $2.75 per trip. Those using the ConnectCard transit pass then have an additional three-hour free transfer period. Seniors, people with disabilities, law enforcement, municipal employees and children under 5 rides free. Children 6 to 11 ride half-price. A day pass costs $7, a week pass $25, a monthly pass $97.50 and an annual pass $1,072.50.

The Pennsylvania Turnpike (I-76), the only toll road in Western Pennsylvania, runs from east of the city to north of the city. It does not pass through Pittsburgh. No Pittsburgh bridge carries a vehicle toll.

Pittsburgh has some of the highest parking rates in the nation for a city its size. The median hourly parking lot and garage rate Downtown are $7, the 16th-highest in the country. Median daily rates are $18 and $225 monthly. Meters run from 50 cents to $4.00 hourly depending on location. Street parking is free after 6:00 pm and on Sundays.

The city achieves above-average but not great transportation scores. Pittsburgh carries a 69 (out of 100) walk score, 58 bike score and 61 transit score. And to put the driving costs in perspective, an average tire balance costs $59.99. That’s almost $7 above the national average.

Pittsburgh healthcare prices

Unlike many other categories, Pittsburgh under-indexes the national average for healthcare. Despite a negligible 1 percent rise year to year, the cost of healthcare in the ‘Burgh is 4.3 percent below the country as a whole. That falls relatively in line with other primary cities around Pennsylvania, if not slightly more affordable. Compare that to Morgantown. The city just 90 minutes to the south now sits at 2.5 higher than the national average, a staggering increase of nearly 16 percent from last year.

You can see affordability in individual services. The average cost for a doctor visit is $101.50, $17 below the national average. Same for an optometrist, nearly $15 below nationally at $95.80. A trip to the dentist runs $103.50, about a buck more than the national figure. An average over-the-counter medication like ibuprofen is just a few cents above the national average, and prescription drugs like insulin can index around $20 over.

Please note prices for healthcare will vary by individual depending on specific healthcare situations.

Pittsburgh goods and services prices

Miscellaneous goods and services in Pittsburgh also index below the rest of the country. That includes everything from haircuts and dry cleaning to new clothing and toiletries. The cost of these items in Pittsburgh is 4.5 percent below the national average. That s a similar figure to most other larger cities statewide. Other Keystone State cities also saw a decrease of around 4 percent.

Some varied items fall well below the national figure. A trip to the beauty salon averages $37, three dollars less. A man’s dress shirt is a full $10 below, at $21.09. And a typical washer repair will run $75, $6 under the national average. The cost of going to a movie, taking your pet to the vet or digitally subscribing to a local news outlet run very close to the national average.

The cost to enroll a child in a full-day private preschool or kindergarten in Pittsburgh is $1,091.67. A year in an international primary school runs $11,800.

Taxes in Pittsburgh

The sales tax rate in Pittsburgh is 7 percent. The city itself collects no taxes, which is good news for the cost of living in Pittsburgh. But the Pennsylvania sales tax rate is 6 percent, plus a 1 percent addition by Allegheny County. There’s no sales tax on items like groceries, candy, clothing, prescriptions and heating fuel. If you spend $1,000, expect to pay $70 in sales tax.

Pittsburgh city residents pay 3 percent in earned income tax. That’s 1 percent in city tax and 2 percent in school tax. That’s in addition to a 3.07 percent income tax from the state.

How much do I need to earn to live in Pittsburgh?

Many experts say Americans should spend no more than 30 percent of pre-tax income on housing. That’s good news for Pittsburghers. Rents for an average one-bedroom fall well within recommended prices based on the local average wage.

The average monthly lease for a Pittsburgh one-bedroom is a reasonable $1,597. Extrapolated to a full year, that’s $19,164. At 30 percent of total income, that’s an affordable rate for someone earning $63,880 a year.

According to Payscale.com, the average yearly salary in Pittsburgh is $68,000, over $4,000 more than needed to rent an average one-bedroom unit. In fact, a Pittsburgh resident making the average salary could afford an apartment leasing for $1,700 at 30 percent expenditure.

Want to find out how much an affordable apartment is for you based on your income? Check out Rent.’s handy Rent Calculator.

Living in Pittsburgh

Part East Coast, part Midwest, Pittsburgh is a great place to live, and quite affordable compared to other cities its size. The cost of living in Pittsburgh is close to the national average in many categories. But is it the right city for you?

If all the information above makes Pittsburgh sound affordable to you, it’s a great place to find your next home. Check out all the great apartments available in Pittsburgh right now at Rent.

The Cost of Living Index comes from coli.org.
The rent information included in this summary is based on a calculation of multifamily rental property inventory on Rent. as of August 2022.
Rent prices are for illustrative purposes only. This information does not constitute a pricing guarantee or financial advice related to the rental market.

Source: rent.com

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I am so excited to share one of my favorite home design stores in San Francisco – The Future Perfect. They were one of the many local spots I partnered with for my Sunset project. It was so hard to restrain myself from pulling every single piece in their stunning Sacramento Street shop. They have the most exquisite designs, sure to have you drooling over where to put them in your dream home! This is Retail Therapy at its finest.

The painted quartz rocks above, exclusive to the store, were one of the first things that caught my eye. The faceted edges and weight of these pieces make them such a statement – they had to make it into the final design! I tried desperately to get the solid brass chandelier in my office obviously, it’s ah-mazing!, but alas, they are custom. I ended up finding these pendants through their online store that were a huge hit though!

These mobiles have to be the most gorgeous ones I have ever seen. Delicate pieces of pottery and shells hang between brass and wooden circles, making them completely unique and each a one of a kind.

At first glance it’s hard to tell what these are, but they are exactly what I need for the loft! They are mirrored wall nobs that you can hang garments, jewelry or just scatter along the wall as beautiful reflective pieces of art. Seriously, gorgeous in person.

These japanese-designed brass bottle openers are still a favorite of mine and the petite silver spoons are picture perfect. I never realized I wanted a spoon collection until now!

Every vignette in The Future Perfect is spot on. I love the back of this bench paired with the long, tangly arms of the chandelier.

I seriously cannot get enough of this store. Every time I am in the area, I peek in just to get a dose of some of the most beautifully crafted pieces I have found in the city. If you’re ever in town, The Future Perfect is a must visit!

Need more Retail Therapy? Check out more of our favorite small shops from around the country right here.

original photography for apartment 34 by Emily Scott 

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Source: apartment34.com

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Notice of defaults, the first step in the foreclosure process, increased to a record high 54,268 filings last month in California, according to ForeclosureRadar.

Filings were up 29.3 percent over February, 26.3 percent compared to the same period last year, and 25.8 percent above previous peak levels seen in April 2008.

Notices of trustee sales, when a property is set to be auctioned, increased 82.3 percent from February and 19.6 percent from the same period a year ago,  but still sat below record highs seen in July 2008.

Meanwhile, auction sales decreased 41.4 percent from February, with just 10,040 properties sold in March, a 36.6 percent decrease from a year ago.

That’s even with mortgage lender discounts at auction increasing to an average 44.1 percent, which makes you wonder if it’s really a buyer’s market…

ForeclosureRadar president Sean O’Toole noted that there has been a large lag between foreclosure filings and foreclosure sales, perpetuated by government meddling.

California Senate Bill 1137, which requires lenders to attempt to contact homeowners before filing a NOD, resulted in a temporary drop in foreclosure filings last September, but only seemed to delay a growing problem.

“The average time from the filing of a Notice of Default to foreclosure sale was 176 days in March, which aligns exactly with the September drop in Notice of Default filings,” the release said.

“Not one government program aimed at addressing the foreclosure problem has dealt with the core issue of negative equity — and there can be no doubt these programs are having dramatic impacts on the foreclosure process”, said O’Toole.

“Unfortunately, the only tangible effect of these programs so far is a significant increase in uncertainty for homeowners, lenders, investors and even government officials trying to make sense of these wild swings in activity,” he added.

The counties of Yuba, Merced, San Benito, Riverside, and San Joaquin led the state in foreclosure sales per capita last month.

Source: thetruthaboutmortgage.com

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A new report released today by IHS Global Insight and PNC Financial Services Group revealed that the nation’s housing market as a whole is “slightly undervalued,” but said there was no sign of a bottom.

The so-called “House Prices in America” fourth quarter update found that home prices had fallen a collective 9.9 percent from their 2007 peak, although much more in sand states like California and Florida.

Home prices fell at an annualized rate of 13 percent nationwide and dropped in 92 percent of the nation’s metro areas, with the greatest declines of the current cycle seen in the fourth quarter.

Price contraction has been the worst in the Southwest and Southeast, areas of the country that were deemed the most overvalued.

“When the 330 metro areas were weighted by market value, the U.S. was 8.4% undervalued; when weighted by housing units, the nation was 10.2% undervalued,” the report said.

Extreme overvaluation was only present in one metro area, Atlantic City, NJ, compared to 52 metros that met that description three years earlier; the Pacific Northwest is the only remaining overvalued region.

“We expect prices to decline further through 2009 as consumers remain wary of taking on housing debt in these uncertain economic conditions,” said Jeannine Cataldi, senior economist and manager of IHS Global Insight’s Regional Real Estate Service.

“Markets where the boom was greatest, and the fall the hardest, will be watched carefully for any signals that may indicate a trend towards stability and potential growth.”

During 2008, statewide home price declines exceeded 20 percent in Arizona, California, Florida and Nevada and 10 percent in Maryland, Michigan, Georgia, and Virginia.

Home prices in five metros in California’s Central Valley have slipped to less than half their peaks, while 38 other metros have declined by more than 30 percent.

“In all, 119 metros, more than one third of the total, experienced price declines of more than 10%,” the report said.

IHS attributed the home price declines to a heavy inventory overhang, tight mortgage credit conditions, poor consumer confidence, and mounting job losses.

The study determines what house prices should be, accounting for differences in population density, relative income levels, and historically observed market premiums or discounts.

If you’re looking to stay abreast of the latest mortgage industry news, consider my free e-mail updates!

Source: thetruthaboutmortgage.com