Likely Culprit: Exploding Student Debt “Economists believe younger Americans now are much more likely to rent for longer periods than did earlier generations ” due not only to the rising home prices and high credit standards but also the high student debt levels and elevated levels of underemployment.” —Wall Street Journal (5/23/2014) With the caveat that...Read More
Leading vs. Lagging Real Estate Indicators The headline news about the housing market this week was the latest Case-Shiller numbers: nationally, housing prices are up over 12% the last year. Meanwhile, closer to home (and in the trenches) . . . Twin Cities agents listing upper bracket homes (over $1.2 million) are bemoaning the lack...Read More
S&P Case-Shiller: ‘Home Prices Rose 1.3% in April’ It’s well-known that various housing market cheerleaders (the National Association of Realtors; your friendly local Realtor?) have a tendency to put a positive spin on housing sales statistics. But, prominent housing bears tend to do the opposite (would that qualify as “backspin??”). Exhibit A: Barry Ritholtz’s take...Read More
Exactly Where Are All Those $206k New Homes?? As [new home] sales rose, median prices . . . continued to fall, slipping to $206,200 from $232,100 in June a year ago. –Jack Healy, “New U.S. Home Sales Rise Sharply as Prices Fall“; The New York Times (7/27/09) The big financial headline today is an unexpected...Read More
New-Home Sales Down (Again)According to the Commerce Department, sales of new, single-family homes decreased by 14.7% in December to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 331,000. Frankly, given the economy, accelerating layoffs, etc., it would have newsworthy if new-home sales hadn’t dropped hard. Silver linings? Not if you’re a builder, a contractor, or a developer....Read More
