According to a Campbell/Inside Mortgage Finance Housing Pulse Tracking Survey, the distressed property index rose to 48.6 percent in March, the highest level the indicator has reached in the past 12 months.
Despite the increase in foreclosed homes, some real estate agencies have reported more people are moving, as RE/MAX recently announced home sales increased by double-digits last month. However, that's not the case for everyone, as a real estate agent recently told Campbell Surveys.
"Investors and first time homebuyers are fearful of what is going on nationally," said a California real estate agent. "Both the gas prices and the weather influence the local market."
While the California real estate agent speculates gas prices are affecting California home sales, pollsters are convinced they are influencing people's view of the national economy. After a recent Reuters/Ipsos poll found 69 percent of respondents believed the country was on the wrong track, pollster Cliff Young said the pessimistic view was "all a function of gas prices."
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