Home price trending up in mid-size markets

The average price of houses in mid-size American cities rose between April and May, according to the Altos Research Mid-Cities Report released on June 17.

Based on an examination of the real estate markets in 21 mid-sized metro areas nationwide, Altos reported that the average median home price in these areas rose by 1.11 percent between April and May, outpacing a national median composite price increase of 0.93 percent.

Orlando, Florida (7.39 percent), Boise, Idaho (5.88 percent) and Boulder, Colorado (5.54 percent) saw the greatest increases in median price. Price increases are good news for homeowners holding underwater mortgages who are waiting to make a move until real estate prices rise enough to get them out of negative equity. However, Altos shows prices have fallen in the Reno, Nevada, market by 0.33 percent over three months. This reflects continued struggles in the region with the greatest number of upside-down mortgages, according to a June CoreLogic report. With 54 percent of its mortgages underwater, Reno has the fifth-highest percentage of upside-down mortgages in the country.

Jacksonville, Naples and Orlando were the three markets with the greatest decrease in inventory between April and May, according to Altos. These Florida markets are also among those identified by Trulia as most attractive to international buyers moving to the U.S. Buyers from abroad spent $41 billion in the U.S. real estate market in the last year, and $13 billion in Florida alone.