Blitz Report on Real Estate Markets

In the latest Blitz Report on Real Estate Markets, released July 13, economist Steve Blitz argues against the
notion that home prices are not going to recover on a national scale until the economy is growing and
unemployment is falling. He notes that changes in the labor market over the last two decades have made job
growth an increasingly less reliable indicator of whether the economy is turning up, and points out home prices
have recovered before the end of each recession since 1975. “Home prices are, in truth, rising before
consumers perceive the recession has ended and well before the employment rate starts to turn down,” says
Blitz. He predicts that home prices will recover in the coming months, and that 1-year average RPX prices will
gain 3.3% in 2010, 6.5% in 2011 and 10% in 2012.