REO volumes are back to normal - are you seeing price rises?

[Paul Birkett]

BP'ers

Im doing some analysis for our upcoming sale of REO and Non-performing Notes in Chicago.

Case Shiller has the market at +5%. I think that's conservative......

If you are a note or REO buyer - what level of price inflation are you seeing in your market?

I'm particularly interested in the greater ChicagoLand metro. I spoke to a handful of REO brokers and they tell me that REO inventory is running at 50% of average volumes. There are very few new foreclosures happening and brokers are getting multiple bids on most sales within a few days.

What do the local experts say? Should we expect better than 5% on average in these metros?