Worcester Real Estate Market Re-Emerging, Among Nation’s Best

Saturday, July 26, 2014

Nicholas Handy, GoLocalWorcester Contributor

Twenty-two-percent of homes in the Worcester metropolitan area fall under the category of resurfacing equity by a new report, ranking Worcester as the sixth highest metropolitan area nationally in that category.

The report – entitled the U.S. Home Equity & Underwater Report - was conducted by RealtyTrac and examined second quarter figures for 2014 to examine nationwide trends in home appreciation value.

“Many of the properties that are seriously underwater are in a deep negative equity hole that will take some time to dig out of,” said Daren Blomquist, vice president at RealtyTrac. “The average loan-to-value on the 9.1 million homes seriously underwater was 133 percent, and the average loan-to-value on the homes in foreclosure that are seriously underwater was 134 percent.”

According to RealtyTrac, houses that fall under the category of resurfacing equity fall between 10 percent negative equity and 10 percent positive equity. Nationwide during the second quarter of 2014, 8.8 million properties were on the verge of resurfacing.

Good For Worcester

While not completely turned around, it is certainly a good sign that more Worcester area homes and mortgages are returning from being underwater.

Because equity is returning to homes, local home owners are able to make more decisions, whether choosing to keep their homes, sell their homes, or upgrade to a new home.

“Equity is starting to come back to the Worcester area,” said Tony Economou, a realtor with RE/MAX in Worcester. “If we are seeing equity return to homes, this allows for people to make more decisions; this is positive for the market.”

Looking to the Future

Economou believes that this could be a positive trend for Worcester, one that could continue for years to come.

All of the most recent reports, surveys and posts on realty websites point to the housing market improving, something Economou agrees with. Provided a large scale negative event – like another economic collapse – doesn’t happen in the near future, Worcester residents could look forward to an increasingly better housing market for years to come.

“Unless there is another economic collapse or another catastrophic worldwide event, I think things will continue to move in a positive direction,” said Economou. “While I don’t see interest rates changing for another year or so, the recent reports are positive; it is certainly good to hear.”

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