Extreme Housing Overvaluation Deemed Nil

Extreme overvaluation in the nation's housing market was "essentially nonexistent" in the second quarter, an indication that "the nation's housing 'bubble' has popped and house prices reflect a healthy balance in relation to long-term fundamentals," according to an analysis released by Global Insight Inc., Waltham, Mass. The quarterly housing valuation analysis, House Prices in America, found that prices fell in 152 of the 330 covered metropolitan markets in the second quarter, representing 46% of all single-family units in the United States. "Although the markets that were extremely overvalued two years ago are seeing expected price declines, other areas are seeing price declines due to weak economic conditions," said Jeannine Cataldi, senior economist and manager of Global Insight's Regional Real Estate Service. "The market has a lot of inventory to work through before prices will change course." The analysis is a joint effort of Global Insight and National City Corp., Cleveland. More information can be found online at http://www.globalinsight.com/housingvaluation and http://www.nationalcity.com/housevaluation.