Eye On Housing
Author Archives
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Where are Sale and Contract Prices per Square Foot Highest?
Looking at single-family homes started in 2013, new NAHB research quantifies regional differences in sale and contract prices per square foot. The prices excluding lot values range from $145 per square foot for contractor-built homes in the Pacific division to $73 per square foot for speculatively-built homes in the West South Central division. The NAHB analysis is based on the… Read More ›
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Affordability Pyramid Shows Housing Market is Bottom Heavy
With the release of the 2014 Priced Out estimates, NAHB Economics revised its affordability pyramid that translates U.S. household income data into a distribution of homes that households can afford by price range. At the base of the market for housing is a large number of households with relatively modest incomes. The homes that these households can afford are also relatively… Read More ›
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NAHB Releases New “Priced Out” Numbers
NAHB Economics recently released its 2014 Priced Out Estimates showing that, nationally, a $1,000 increase in the median new home price (triggered, for example, by additional regulation) prices 206,269 households out of the market for the home. This means that 206,269 U.S. households could qualify for a mortgage on the median-priced new home before, but not after, the price increase…. Read More ›
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New Home Prices by Metro Area and State
In response to frequent requests from its members, NAHB Economics recently released its estimates of new single-family home prices by state and metro area. The most expensive new single family homes are built and sold in three Northeastern states: Connecticut, Massachusetts and New York – with their respective median new single-family home prices of $491,425, $432,724 and $411,169. District of… Read More ›
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Young Adults Living with Parents Up Sharply
New NAHB Economics research shows that the share of young adults ages 18 to 34 living with parents or parents-in-law increased sharply in the late 2000s. According to the most recent American Community Survey (ACS), one in three young adults ages 18 to 34, or more than 24 million, lived in homes of their parents or parents-in-law in 2012. By… Read More ›
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Home Building Impact Fees: State Averages
A national survey of 271 jurisdictions conducted by Duncan Associates in 2012 reveals wide cross-country differences in impact fees that individual jurisdictions charge. The map below presents state averages for standardized single-family units (three-bedroom, 2,000 square-foot units, at density of 4 units per acre and value of $200,000). These averages are for communities that actually charge impact fees and include… Read More ›
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What Multifamily Properties Are Most Expensive to Maintain?
Trying to fill the void that was created in 2001 when the Residential Finance Survey (RFS) was discontinued, the US Census Bureau started collecting data on financial, physical and other characteristics of multifamily rental housing properties through its newly designed Rental Housing Finance Survey (RHFS). The first survey took place in 2012. The estimates are still under review by the… Read More ›
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Published FHA Loan Limits Show Large Declines for 2014
Loan limits for mortgages backed by the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) were scheduled to fall in 2014 due to the expiration of increased limits set during the housing crisis. However, the magnitude of change for the published limits has caught many by surprise. Stimulus legislation established higher limits to ensure homebuyer access to credit during the Great Recession. In general, FHA loan… Read More ›
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How Long Does It Take to Build a House?
The 2012 Survey of Construction (SOC) from the Census Bureau shows that on average it takes about 7 months from obtaining a building permit to completing a new single-family home. Looking at the houses completed in 2012, houses built for sale, on average, register the shortest time from permits to completion – between 5 and 6 months. Houses built on… Read More ›
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What Do Home Buyers Buy after Moving
In a post last week we discussed NAHB research showing how during the first two years after closing on a home sale, home buyers tend to spend money on furnishings, appliances and remodeling considerably more compared to non-moving owners. Buyers of new homes spend most, outspending non-movers by a factor of 2.8. Buyers of existing homes spend twice as much… Read More ›