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Sales and Affordability Increased in Fourth Quarter Metro Area Home Prices
February 16, 2012 1:50 am
Housing affordability conditions improved in most metropolitan areas from softer existing-home prices and record-low mortgage interest rates in the fourth quarter, with rising sales and lower inventory creating more balanced conditions, according to the latest quarterly report by the National Association of REALTORS®.
Introduced with this release is a new annual metro-level housing affordability index, with historically favorable conditions dominating across the country.
The median existing single-family home price rose in 29 out of 149 metropolitan statistical areas (MSAs) in the fourth quarter from a year earlier; two were unchanged and 118 areas had price declines.
Lawrence Yun, NAR chief economist, said the figures reflect greater home sales activity at lower price points. “Sales have risen strongly in lower price ranges from one year ago, while sales at the upper end remain sluggish,” he said. “More importantly, we’re seeing a consistent trend of declining inventory, which means supply and demand conditions are becoming more balanced in more areas, which will help stabilize home prices.”
The national median existing single-family home price was $163,500 in the fourth quarter, down 4.2 percent from $170,600 in the fourth quarter of 2010. The median is where half sold for more and half sold for less. Distressed homes—foreclosures and short sales, which sold at discounts averaging 15 to 20 percent—accounted for 30 percent of fourth quarter sales; they were 34 percent a year earlier.
At the end of the fourth quarter there were 2.38 million existing homes available for sale, which is 21.2 percent lower than the close of the fourth quarter of 2010 when there were 3.02 million homes on the market.
NAR’s national Housing Affordability Index rose to a record high 184.5 in 2011, based on the relationship between median home price, median family income and average mortgage interest rate. The higher the index, the greater the household purchasing power; recordkeeping began in 1970.
Between 2010 and 2011, in markets where comparisons are available, all but 2 out of 148 areas showed improvement in housing affordability, and 69 MSAs had double-digit increases in affordability conditions.
Source: The National Association of REALTORS®
Introduced with this release is a new annual metro-level housing affordability index, with historically favorable conditions dominating across the country.
The median existing single-family home price rose in 29 out of 149 metropolitan statistical areas (MSAs) in the fourth quarter from a year earlier; two were unchanged and 118 areas had price declines.
Lawrence Yun, NAR chief economist, said the figures reflect greater home sales activity at lower price points. “Sales have risen strongly in lower price ranges from one year ago, while sales at the upper end remain sluggish,” he said. “More importantly, we’re seeing a consistent trend of declining inventory, which means supply and demand conditions are becoming more balanced in more areas, which will help stabilize home prices.”
The national median existing single-family home price was $163,500 in the fourth quarter, down 4.2 percent from $170,600 in the fourth quarter of 2010. The median is where half sold for more and half sold for less. Distressed homes—foreclosures and short sales, which sold at discounts averaging 15 to 20 percent—accounted for 30 percent of fourth quarter sales; they were 34 percent a year earlier.
At the end of the fourth quarter there were 2.38 million existing homes available for sale, which is 21.2 percent lower than the close of the fourth quarter of 2010 when there were 3.02 million homes on the market.
NAR’s national Housing Affordability Index rose to a record high 184.5 in 2011, based on the relationship between median home price, median family income and average mortgage interest rate. The higher the index, the greater the household purchasing power; recordkeeping began in 1970.
Between 2010 and 2011, in markets where comparisons are available, all but 2 out of 148 areas showed improvement in housing affordability, and 69 MSAs had double-digit increases in affordability conditions.
Source: The National Association of REALTORS®
Published with permission from RISMedia.
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