Not according to the latest Arizona Blue Chip Economic Forecast out of Arizona State University. The report predicts that any home price declines this year won’t be huge — pointing to the fact that Arizona posted higher appreciation rates in 2006 than the country as a whole and the state’s strong job growth.The study points out that Arizona home prices rose 9.6 percent from the fourth quarter 2005 to the same period last year, compared with a 5.9 percent increase nationwide. It also states that, while home construction has slowed, Arizona construction employment saw an all-time high at the end of 2006 with 254,500 workers and an increase of 10 percent from the year prior.Most local market analysts I’ve talked to in recent weeks seem to agree that the Valley’s home market isn’t in danger of crashing. They also admit that no one has a crystal ball. The market’s future and its overall impact on the national economy are debated constantly in the national press and the blogosphere.But while industry observers speculate on the market’s future, local builders and homeowners alike are struggling to make sales. More than 40,000 existing homes are still on the market and another estimated 12,000 to 14,000 completed new homes are sitting empty.

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