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Home prices are up, foreclosures are way down, and new home sales have spiked in the East Valley. That's according to the latest housing report from Arizona State University

PETER O’DOWD: The biggest surprise came in Gilbert, where new home sales in March outpaced all other sectors, including foreclosures and short sales, for the first time since the housing crisis began in 2008. Mike Orr directs the Center of Real Estate Theory and Practice at ASU. He says Valleywide, foreclosures are down 60 percent from a year ago. Median home prices are up 20 percent.

MIKE ORR: And it’s probably going to continue to get better. So that kind of feeds on itself. As people continue to get more confident, they tend to say if it’s safe to buy a house, perhaps I should and that just adds to the demand. 

O’DOWD: Orr says the housing market is still unbalanced. Bargains are scarce, and most homes are flooded with potential buyers -- making the purchase difficult, despite low interest rates and still relatively low prices by historical standards.

See the full report here. Source: Center for Real Estate Theory and Practice at Arizona State University's WP Carey School of Business