Forbes released an article on Feb 7, 2008 naming the top cities for buying a home in 2008. These are “…markets where job growth is strong, foreclosures are relatively low and inventory is high. With these factors in place, buyers can still dictate terms of sale and negotiate prices, but aren’t as exposed to the economic and lending risk problems that have sunk many markets around the country.”

Salt Lake City tops the list, again, as being the #1 place to buy a home this year, saying, “Of the major metros in the U.S., Salt Lake City is adding jobs faster than anywhere. The economic boom in SLC has drawn residents from all over the country, and more than a few home builders trying to make a profit in these otherwise woeful times. Housing supply has gone up quickly, and there hasn’t been a high rate of foreclosure.”

But some of the other cities might surprise you.

For example, the article places Phoenix at #5, saying, “Phoenix has a very high foreclosure rate; there’s no way around that. Based on RealtyTrac’s estimates, there is one foreclosure for every 87 households in Phoenix. Still, our data suggest that strong job and economic growth in many non-housing sectors of the local economy is enough to offset it, and people are still moving to the Valley of the Sun at a quick rate.”

And Las Vegas at #7, saying”Las Vegas is a market hammered by foreclosures, due largely to extremely high speculation in both residential communities and the condo market. Though the housing slowdown has hurt jobs in the construction sector, Vegas continues to attract businesses and job seekers to its growing economy, making its excess inventory (and there’s a ton) less toxic than in other places. “

The complete top ten cities are

1 Salt Lake City, UT

2 Raleigh, NC

3 Orlando, FL

4 Charlotte, NC

5 Phoenix, AZ

6 Seattle, WA

7 Las Vegas, NV

8 Jacksonville, FL

9 Richmond, VA

10 Houston, TX

The US economy will avoid recession as the housing market begins to recover this spring, according to billionaire investor Sam Zell.

As reported on CNBC.com:

Speaking on “Squawk Box” this morning, Zell attributed much of the current economic troubles to fear-mongering and politicking by Democratic presidential contenders Hillary Rodham Clinton and Barack Obama.

“Obviously what we have going on is an attempt to create a self-fulfilling prophecy,” said Zell, chairman of Equity Investments Group and owner of the Chicago Cubs, Chicago Tribune, Los Angeles Times and other companies. “We have two Democratic candidates who are vying with each other to describe the economic situation worse.

“The reality is that if you live on Wall Street and you’re in the credit markets the world couldn’t be worse. If you’re a farmer and you’re getting $25 for your wheat, you’re having a great time. If you’re a CEO and you’ve got a balance sheet that’s bullet-proof, you’re in a great position. This whole thing is way out of control, way out of hand.”

Zell said that although he doesn’t try to pick bottoms in markets he believes housing has hit its nadir and will turn around this spring as inventory clears out.

As for the credit situation, he projected that once markdowns are out of the way banks will begin to regain their footing.

In the wide-ranging interview, Zell also voiced support for Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke.

“I think he should be renewed when his term is up. I think one of the positives of the United States is having people in the position of the Federal Reserve (chairman) for long periods of time,” Zell said.

“I think Bernanke’s reduction in interest rates has been spot-on, because basically we’re going to fix the credit markets by creating a big enough spread between the risk-free cost of capital and what’s available so that greed overtakes fear and the game begins again.”

Here’s a video news report that ran on KUTV Channel 2 News on January 23, 2008.

CLICK HERE TO SEE THE VIDEO

Wells Fargo held it’s annual economic forecast for the Salt Lake Board of Realtors, and it looks like we’re in a very interesting market. Home prices are holding steady (for the homes that are selling), but the total inventory of homes on the market is growing every day and the total number of sold properties is down.

The recommendation to home sellers is to focus on getting their home SOLD by confronting the reality of the market and adjusting prices to reflect current conditions. Homes will still sell if they are priced correctly and competitively, and the marketwide forecast is that prices may have to adjust down 7% to 10% to get things moving again.

Please call or email me anytime with questions or comments about the current real estate market and what it means to your home’s value.