Housing news 5.1.2017
This week in housing news you can use, home prices set a new U.S. record, 20 markets outperform others for profit, and Beyoncé may be buying LA’s most expensive house.
New home-price highs
The S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller Indices – measuring U.S. home prices – showed that home prices hit their fourth consecutive all-time high since 2013. The National Home Price NSA Index (measuring single-family homes each month in nine census divisions) increased by 5.8% in February, up from the previous month’s 5.6% uptick.
The 10-City Composite increased 5.2% annually (up from 5% the month before) and the 20-City Composite increased 5.9% (up from 5.7% in January).
Source: HousingWire
Housing starts and why they matter
Housing starts refers to the number of new homes builders started construction on in a given month. Why do housing starts matter to home buyers? New construction, according to Realtor.com, is an indicator of an area’s economic health. It “signals more jobs, higher salaries, and an abundance of loans to fund businesses and other endeavors.” It means there are more homes available to purchase, which is good news in a low-inventory market. Plus, adding more inventory brings down inflated prices.
“We’re relatively optimistic,” said Andres Carbacho-Burgos, Moody’s Analytics senior economist. “By end of 2017, we expect housing starts to be closer to 1.7 million,” or a 10% increase over a year earlier.
Source: Realtor.com
20 most profitable housing markets
A recent ATTOM Data solutions ranked the 20 best-performing U.S. housing markets for return on purchase price in the first quarter of 2017.
| Rank | City | Return | Price Gain |
| 1 | San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, California | 71% | $356,000 |
| 2 | San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, California | 65% | $276,750 |
| 3 | Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, Washington | 56% | $139,325 |
| 4 | Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, Oregon-Washington | 52% | $110,799 |
| 5 | Stockton-Lodi, California | 51% | $101,000 |
| 6 | Modesto, California | 51% | $87,500 |
| 7 | Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, California | 50% | $187,000 |
| 8 | Denver-Aurora-Lakewood, Colorado | 50% | 110,000 |
| 9 | Vallejo-Fairfield, California | 47% | $115,000 |
| 10 | Urban Honolulu, Hawaii | 46% | $161,110 |
| 11 | Salem, Oregon | 46% | 70,800 |
| 12 | Greeley, Colorado | 44% | $85,050 |
| 13 | Fort Collins, Colorado | 43% | $97,500 |
| 14 | Sacramento-Roseville-Arden-Arcade, California | 43% | $99,000 |
| 15 | Oxnard-Thousand Oaks-Ventura, California | 43% | $160,000 |
| 16 | Boston-Cambridge-Newton, Massachusetts-New Hampshire | 41% | $111,100 |
| 17 | Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, California | 41% | $90,000 |
| 18 | San Diego-Carlsbad, California | 41% | $144,000 |
| 19 | Austin-Round Rock, Texas | 39% | $81,795 |
| 20 | Port St. Lucie, Florida | 39% | $53,000 |
Source: Credit.com via CBS News MarketWatch
Beyoncé and Jay Z to buy LA’s most expensive home
Music’s golden couple have twice been outbid for a home in Los Angeles. Their latest tactic was to go big. Way big. Beyoncé Knowles Carter and Shawn “Jay Z” Carter submitted a $120 million bid for an 8-bedroom, 11-bath mansion and grounds under construction at 454 Cuesta Way. It was listed for $135 million by Hilton & Hyland, but their “low” bid still would qualify as the highest paid for a home in Los Angeles.
Source: Business Insider, Los Angeles Business Journal
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