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09/01/2005: "Would you bet on Median Home prices"

PinnacleSports.com Opens Betting on Median Home Prices in Several U.S. Markets

WILLEMSTAD, Curacao, Sept. 1 /PRNewswire/ -- Low mortgage rates and
favorable market conditions have attracted buyers at staggering rates, pushing
housing prices to all-time highs in the past year. Although the U.S. housing
market continued its unprecedented growth in the second quarter, several
economists, including Federal Reserve Chairman, Alan Greenspan, believe prices
will peak and are predicting a real estate slowdown. With the housing boom on
the minds of both buyers and sellers, PinnacleSports.com today released
betting options on home prices in some of the largest metropolitan areas in
the United States.
The first company in the world to offer betting on the average price of
gasoline, PinnacleSports.com has expanded wagering into another economic
indicator by offering betting options on third quarter median home prices
in numerous metropolitan areas, as reported by the National Association of
Realtors (NAR) on November 15. The oddsmakers at PinnacleSports.com are at
odds with economists, predicting that third quarter prices in numerous metro
areas will again show significant growth.
In the second quarter, NAR reported a median home price in the Phoenix
market of $243,000, an increase of 47 percent over the same period in 2004.
PinnacleSports.com has set an over/under line for the median price in Phoenix
of $263,000 in the third quarter, an 8 percent jump in the nation's
fastest growing market. The betting line for the nation's largest city, New
York, has been set at $528,000 for the third quarter, a 4.2 percent increase
from the last NAR report. Meanwhile PinnacleSports.com has set the over/under
line on the average cost of a home in Boston at $423,000, whilst those looking
to buy or sell in Los Angeles can expect a median price of $480,000, according
to PinnacleSports.com. The oddsmakers at PinnacleSports.com also anticipate
the price in San Francisco to approach $747,000. Median home prices in other
metro areas that bettors can wager include: Chicago ($268,000); Washington DC
($454,000); Las Vegas ($307,000); Seattle ($324,000); San Diego ($619,000) and
Philadelphia ($216,000).
"House prices in America continue to be driven by non-economic
determinants and not by fundamental factors in the housing market," said Simon
Noble of PinnacleSports.com. "With homebuyers prepared to buy as long as they
believe prices will continue to rise, we're confident that our unique betting
markets, which draw interest directly from the public, will once again be an
accurate predictor of public opinion, as was the case when we offered wagering
on the cost of gasoline."
PinnacleSports.com has opened betting lines on the median home prices for
the third quarter of the year in more than 40 markets where bettors can wager
on the over/under at -105 (i.e., win $1 for every $1.05 bet). For more
information and a complete list of available odds, please visit
http://www.pinnaclesports.com .


Will Third Quarter Median Home Prices Be Over/Under this Amount
in each Market?

Market Name Over/Under Price NAR 2nd Quarter Price
Phoenix-Mesa-Scottsdale $263,000 $243,400
New York-Wayne-White Plains $528,000 $506,800
Boston-Cambridge-Quincy $423,000 $418,500
Los Angeles-Long Beach-Santa Ana $480,000 $474,800
Chicago-Naperville-Joliet $268,000 $263,600
Washington-Arlington-Alexandria $454,000 $429,200
Honolulu $603,000 $577,800
Las Vegas-Paradise $307,000 $300,100
Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington $152,000 $149,100
St. Louis $143,000 $141,900
Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue $324,000 $310,300
San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont $747,000 $726,900
San Diego-Carlsbad-San Marcos $619,000 $605,600
Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington $216,000 $211,000
Denver-Aurora $250,000 $248,400
Sacramento-Arden-Arcade-Roseville $400,000 $377,400
Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington $244,000 $237,700
Houston-Baytown-Sugarland $144,000 $142,500

Source: PR NEwswire