Is U.S. housing unaffordable? Depends on how you chart it

affordabl-housingBy Nick Timiraos | The  Wall Street Journal

Rising home prices and interest rates made housing less affordable last year than at any time in the last five years, according to data released Tuesday by the National Association of Realtors.

So is it time to sound the siren over a housing bubble? Not really. Nationally, the Realtors’ housing affordability index shows that, excluding the last five years, homes for the U.S. as a whole are still more affordable than at any time since at least 1981.

Two charts help explain what’s going on here. Bubble fears are being fanned by this chart comparing median home prices to household incomes.  Robert Albertson, chief strategist at Sandler O’Neill + Partners LP, produced a report last November titled “Another Housing Bubble” that featured the price-to-income chart prominently.

Continued:  

Share this!

Additional Articles

News Categories

Get Our Twice Weekly Newsletter!

* indicates required

Rose Law Group pc values “outrageous client service.” We pride ourselves on hyper-responsiveness to our clients’ needs and an extraordinary record of success in achieving our clients’ goals. We know we get results and our list of outstanding clients speaks to the quality of our work.

Friday May 3 News & Views

State Supreme Court reverses sanctions against Arizona GOP in 2020 election challenge The decision overturns lower courts’ rulings and could chill similar sanctions in future

Read More »
February 2014
M T W T F S S
 12
3456789
10111213141516
17181920212223
2425262728