More U.S. home sellers cutting prices - Trulia

By Julie Haviv

NEW YORK, Sept 11 (Reuters) - More than one in four U.S. homes for sale on Sept. 1 had their prices cut at least once since landing on the market, up slightly from a month earlier, a study showed on Friday.

As of Sept. 1, a total of 26 percent of homes had their prices reduced, up from 25 percent on Aug.1, Trulia.com said in its monthly price report.

Driving the increase was the pending expiration of the government's $8,000 tax credit for first-time home buyers -- part of the stimulus bill -- and summer months which are the peak sales period, according to data compiled by Trulia.com.

The average discount was 10 percent from the original price, unchanged from August. On average, sellers dropped their price by $39,378, Trulia said.

"Housing data has shown us that sales are on the rise this summer and aggressive pricing is one of the factors driving these sales," said Pete Flint, Trulia co-founder and CEO, in an interview with Reuters. "The other factor is the $8,000 first time home buyers credit which we believe will continue to drive a high volume of sales for the next few months."

Home sellers looking to sell their property before the tax credit expires in November will continue to cut prices in hopes of attracting home buyers in search of discounts, he said.

Several cities have seen consistent month-over-month increases in the percentage of listings with price reductions from June 1 to Sept. 1. They include Kansas City, Missouri; Colorado Springs, Colorado; Omaha, Nebraska; Atlanta, Georgia; Indianapolis, Indiana; Memphis, Tennessee; Milwaukee, Wisconsin; and Raleigh, North Carolina, Trulia said.

Nationwide, in dollar terms, $28.5 billion has been reduced for all homes for sale on the market on September 1, up by more than $1.1 billion from June to September, the data showed.

Of the luxury homes, categorized by those costing $2 million or more, 26 percent have seen a reduction, up from 25 percent. The average decrease for a luxury home was 14 percent off the original asking price, the data showed.

For homes listed for less than $2 million, 25 percent have seen a reduction, consistent on a month-over-month basis. The deduction, however, was only 9 percent off the original asking price, the data showed.

(Editing by Andrew Hay)