Zillow: Values hold steady, foreclosures slow

Home prices mostly held flat in August, increasing a modest 0.1 percent from July to August, according to Zillow’s latest Home Value Index.

Overall, home values have fallen 4.5 percent to $172,600 year-over-year (August 2011 compared to August 2010), according to Zillow. Since reaching its peak in June 2006, home values have fallen 28 percent.

“At this point, we maintain the expectation that a definitive bottom will not occur until 2012 at the earliest,” said Stan Humphries, Zillow’s chief economist.

Meanwhile, the foreclosure liquidation rate – the number of homes lost to the bank – has continued to slow. In the latest survey, it continued to hold steady at about 9.2 out of every 10,000 homes foreclosed.

“Due to the robo-signing controversy, the pace of foreclosure liquidations has been slower than it would be otherwise, which is impacting home value trends positively,” Humphries says. “Eventually the pace will pick up again, putting more bank-owned homes into local markets and putting additional downward pressure on prices.”