A tangential item of note that’s come up a few times is that the size of the average American home is on the rise — in fact, up almost 30% since 1970. And that’s averages — new homes are up 60% compared to the early 70s. One interesting side effect of this is that we’ve effectively wiped out all of the energy gains we’ve gotten from more efficient appliances, insulation, etc… However, Vox has an interesting take on this. It turns out, there are other factors at play, as well.
As we reported Friday, it is true that at least statistically it is harder for blacks and hispanics to get mortgages than it is for whites and asians. However, while the news isn’t necessarily good, it’s not completely dire, either. At least we can say that the picture is improving. Conventional loans for blacks, for example, had approval rates improve by more than 4 full percentage points from 2013 to 2014. According to the statistics, we still have a long way to go, but at least the trend is in the right direction.
The problem with averages is that pretty much no one is average. While it’s fairly clear that the housing market as a whole has recovered, Business Insider correctly points out that the recovery is divided by age, race, and location. The location part is fairly obvious, as could be seen in yesterday’s blog post. We touched on these other two issues before, too: Millennials face a higher cost of entry than their parents, limiting options for first-time buyers; and black and hispanic homebuyers lag asians and whites.
As you’ve seen, the data are up and down on the state of the housing market. The Economist has done an exciting job of aggregating data from Zillow, and producing five interactive charts. The charts cover data from Q1 1980 all the way through Q2 of this year. They also address 24 major markets, and the U.S. as a whole, and encompass the housing price index, prices in real terms, price:income ratio, price:rent, and percentage change. Have fun with the data!
Aside from a few people of the long-term-planning persuasion who start holiday shopping on December 26th, most of us aren’t quite ready to get into shopping just yet. Still, shopping for friends and family is different than shopping for yourself … or your home. The last few years have seen an explosion in “home automation” technology, and much of it is getting better and more cost effective all the time. Tom’s Guide has put together a list of the 14 best smart-home gadgets of 2015. Shop early, and treat yourself and your home.
It’s widely known (and he’s written about it many, many times himself) that when Warren Buffett invests in a stock, he does so after thorough research, and for the long haul. Essentially, he ignores short-term news. We’ve reported several times recently on the strength of the housing market. Two new pieces of news are out this week, which point to a more dire picture. But take them with a grain of salt. “It’s tough to go on month-to-month data. Anything can happen in a given month like weather,” says Jim Gaines, chief economist at the Texas A&M University’s Real Estate Center.
The housing market seems to be increasingly in good shape, as this blog has reported recently. However, “in good shape” means different things to different people. The construction industry is booming, if you look at the number of housing starts. However, if you look at the number of completions, they’re substantially lagging — up only 3% on one-unit structures. And with completions growing at that slow of a pace, there’s likely to be upward pressure on home prices in the near future.
There was a time, not too long ago, where quite a few people took hauntings quite seriously. In fact, I seem to recall a lot of old movies where the basic theme was, some family got a house, cheap, because it was haunted. And that’s still true today in some cultures — but not in the U.S.A. “When it comes to real estate, a home’s haunted legacy can actually be a selling point,” reports Angela Colley for realtor.com. So, if you want more for your home, consider getting a ghost!
