Eye On Housing
Existing home sales dropped for the third straight month in January, according to the latest report from the National Association of Realtors. This is the lowest level in recent three years. Total Existing home sales, including single-family homes, townhomes, condominiums and co-ops, decreased 1.2% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.94 million in January, the lowest level since November… Read More ›
A modest increase in interest rates offset a slight decline in home prices to keep housing affordability essentially level in the fourth quarter of 2018 and still hovering at a 10-year low, according to the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB)/Wells Fargo Housing Opportunity Index (HOI). In all, 56.6 percent of new and existing homes sold between the beginning of… Read More ›
As revealed in a previous post, 58% of buyers actively searching for a home to buy in the fourth quarter of 2018 have been looking – unsuccessfully – for three months or longer. Why is it taking these buyers that long to pull the trigger? The most important reason is they can’t find a home at a price they can… Read More ›
Most people start thinking about and planning a home purchase well in advance of actually engaging in the process of finding a home. In a national poll in the final quarter of 2018, 13% of adults reported planning a home purchase within the next year. Of those prospective buyers, 54% were already actively involved in trying to find a home… Read More ›
In addition to analyzing buyers’ perceptions about housing availability, the quarterly Housing Trends Report (HTR) also explores perceptions about housing affordability. The poll asks prospective home buyers to estimate the share of homes available in their markets they believe they can afford. In the final quarter of 2018, three out of every four buyers (76%) estimate they can afford fewer than… Read More ›
In the last quarter of 2017, 27% of prospective home buyers expected the search for a home to get easier in the months ahead. Fast forward a year to the final quarter of 2018, and that share falls to 19%. Logically, if fewer buyers think house hunting is getting easier, then a growing share must feel it is getting harder… Read More ›
In the final quarter of 2018, 13% of adults reported plans to purchase a home within a year. A year earlier, in the final quarter of 2017, a significantly larger portion – 24% – had the same plans. This sharp decline in the share of prospective home buyers provides additional evidence that the erosion of housing affordability has become a… Read More ›
Affordability continues to be a serious constraint for prospective home buyers. One way to find out buyers’ perception about this issue is to ask them to estimate the share of all homes for-sale in their markets they are able to afford. A strong majority of 79% say they can afford fewer than half of the homes available. This in turn… Read More ›
Only about 2 out of every 10 prospective home buyers (people looking to buy a home in the next year) expect the search for a home to get easier in the months ahead. The majority, about 7 out of 10, instead think house hunting will get harder or stay about the same. This opinion is shared among buyers of all… Read More ›
A modest increase in interest rates and home prices kept housing affordability at a 10-year low in the third quarter of 2018, according to the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB)/Wells Fargo Housing Opportunity Index (HOI). In all, 56.4 percent of new and existing homes sold between the beginning of July and end of September were affordable to families earning… Read More ›