The city of Anchorage is unique in a number of ways, not the least of which is being the capital of the “Last Frontier”, Alaska. The Anchorage real estate market is particularly notable for remaining quite stable and not volatile when compared to the lower 48 states. Anchorage has never been in a large amount of trouble by any measure of the term - the foreclosure rate for Anchorage is almost a model for the rest of the country because of its resilience in the face of the nationwide economic recession. The Anchorage real estate market was brought down somewhat by the bursting of the local real estate bubble and some local sub-prime mortgages, but most signs indicate that a recovery is impending.
According to Realtor Paulie Hofseth, writing in the Realty Times on July 2, 2009, “the Anchorage market remains active especially in the under $350,000 purchase price range. Inventory is starting to pick up as it normally does this time of year. It's good news for sellers that there are fewer homes on the market this May than in 2008. In fact, inventory for May 2009 was down about 4.8 percent from may 2008.” Matt Dimick, also an Anchorage realtor, made the further observation that “home sales are still very steady”, although he did add that due to a light rash of short sales and foreclosures, that Anchorage should still be considered a buyers' market.
The overall economy of Alaska, however, seems to be faring slightly worse than the Anchorage real estate market. According to an article in the Alaska Journal of Commerce dated July 23, 2009, “It's official, Alaska is now listed as being immersed in the nation's recessionary woes. Still, in relative terms, it's better her than in most places in the US, according to a state economist.” A June 13, 2009 article in the Anchorage Daily News found that the foreclosure rate in Anchorage is actually lower than when the crisis began a year ago, while a second article from the same date characterized local real estate sales as “right-sized.”