Houston home sellers not slashing prices

The number of price-reduced homes across the country have risen sharply in the last month, but the sellers of Houston homes aren't cutting prices as much as those in many other cities.

According to ZipRealty, the number of home listings with at least one price cut jumped 24.1 percent compared to the same time last year, showing the effect of the winter slowdown without the artificial stimulus of the homebuyer tax credit.

Nationwide, 48.4 percent of listings had at least one price cut, with an average reduction of 7.6 percent.

"Typically, November is a slower month for sales," said John Oldham, director of marketing for ZipRealty. "The increase in price-reduced listings is evidence that sellers are still trying to find the right price point to get the property to sell."

In Houston, the report said that sellers made an average of 1.8 price cuts, adding up to just a 5.6 percent reduction in their list prices. In total, 45.3 percent of listings were reduced.

The lack of reductions shows the resilience of the local Houston real estate market. While home price drops have been experienced nationwide, the Houston Association of Realtors reported sales prices last month reached their highest levels ever for an October.