Curbed SF – Most real estate experts agree that rising home prices of 2012 will continue upward in the New Year. Unsurprisingly, the San Francisco Bay Area is a market to watch, having fared well through the recession in terms of property values. Surprising though is which neighborhoods are gaining value most dramatically. Redfin’s list of “neighborhoods to watch across the nation” include Bay Area ‘nabes, to be sure, but none… read more…

Los Angeles Times – The NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS® reported that 2012 will probably go down as a record year for housing affordability, according to its affordability index.

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Los Angeles Times – The CALIFORNIA ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS® estimated that 49 percent of home buyers in the third quarter could afford a median-priced house in California, a decline from 51 percent last quarter.

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Los Angeles Times – The CALIFORNIA ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS® estimated that 49 percent of home buyers in the third quarter could afford a median-priced house in California, a decline from 51 percent last quarter.

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Rising home prices offset lower interest rates, reducing housing affordability in California during the third quarter of 2012, C.A.R. reported Monday. 

The percentage of home buyers who could afford to purchase a median-priced, existing single-family home in California fell to 49 percent in the third quarter of 2012, down from 51 percent in second-quarter 2012 and from 51 percent in third-quarter 2011, according to C.A.R.’s Traditional Housing Affordability Index (HAI). 

Home buyers needed to earn a minimum annual income of $65,810 to qualify for the purchase of a $339,860 statewide median-priced, existing single-family home in the third quarter of 2012.  The monthly payment, including taxes and insurance on a 30-year fixed-rate loan, would be $1,650, assuming a 20 percent down payment and an effective composite interest rate of 3.72 percent.  The effective composite interest rate in second-quarter 2012 was 3.92 percent and 4.63 percent in the third quarter of 2011.

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Higher home prices offset record-low interest rates and lowered housing affordability in California in the second quarter of 2012, C.A.R. reported last week. 

The percentage of home buyers who could afford to purchase a median-priced, existing single-family home in California fell to 51 percent in the second quarter of 2012, down from 56 percent in first-quarter 2012, but matched the 51 percent recorded in second quarter 2011, according to C.A.R.’s Traditional Housing Affordability Index (HAI). 

C.A.R.’s HAI measures the percentage of all households that can afford to purchase a median-priced, single-family home in California.  C.A.R. also reports affordability indices for regions and select counties within the state.  The Index is considered the most fundamental measure of housing well-being for home buyers in the state.

Home buyers needed to earn a minimum annual income of $62,390 to qualify for the purchase of a $316,230 statewide median-priced, existing single-family home in the second quarter of 2012. The monthly payment, including taxes and insurance on a 30-year fixed-rate loan, would be $1,560, assuming a 20 percent down payment and an effective composite interest rate of 3.92 percent.  The effective composite interest rate in first-quarter 2012 was 4.16 percent and 4.85 percent in the second quarter of 2011.

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Sacramento Bee – Higher home prices offset record-low interest rates and lowered housing affordability in California in the second quarter of 2012, the CALIFORNIA ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS® (C.A.R.) recently reported. 

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• The percentage of home buyers who could afford to purchase a median-priced, existing single-family home in California fell to 51 percent in the second quarter of 2012, down from 56 percent in first-quarter 2012, but matched the 51 percent recorded in second quarter 2011, according to C.A.R.’s Traditional Housing Affordability Index (HAI).  
• C.A.R.’s HAI measures the percentage of all households that can afford to purchase a median-priced, single-family home in California.  C.A.R. also reports affordability indices for regions and select counties within the state.  The Index is considered the most fundamental measure of housing well-being for home buyers in the state. 
• Home buyers needed to earn a minimum annual income of $62,390 to qualify for the purchase of a $316,230 statewide median-priced, existing single-family home in the second quarter of 2012. The monthly payment, including taxes and insurance on a 30-year fixed-rate loan, would be $1,560, assuming a 20 percent down payment and an effective composite interest rate of 3.92 percent.  The effective composite interest rate in first-quarter 2012 was 4.16 percent and 4.85 percent in the second quarter of 2011. 
• The San Francisco Bay Area experienced the largest quarterly declines in housing affordability, resulting from double-digit price increases with little movement in the interest rate.  However, when compared with the previous year, changes to the affordability index were minimal, thanks to a near-one percent drop in the effective composite interest rate. 
• At an index of 78 percent, San Bernardino County was the most affordable county of the state. At the other end, San Mateo County edged out San Francisco County (24 percent) to be the least affordable, with only 23 percent of households able to purchase the county’s median-priced home. 

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Nationwide housing affordability hit a new record high for a second consecutive quarter in the first three months of this year, according to the latest National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo Housing Opportunity Index (HOI). Yet tight lending conditions continue to pose a major obstacle to many prospective home buyers.

The latest HOI data reveal that 77.5 percent of all new and existing homes that were sold in this year’s first quarter were affordable to families earning the national median income of $65,000.  This beats the previous record set in the final quarter of 2011, when 75.9 percent of homes sold were affordable to median-income earners.

The most affordable major housing markets in the first quarter were: Indianapolis-Carmel, Ind., Dayton, Ohio; Lakeland-Winter Haven, Fla.; Modesto, Calif.; Grand Rapids-Wyoming, Mich.; and Buffalo-Niagara Falls, N.Y.; the latter two of which tied for fifth place.

The least affordable major housing markets included: New York-White Plains-Wayne, N.Y.-N.J.; San Francisco-San Mateo-Redwood City, Calif.; Honolulu; Los Angeles-Long Beach-Glendale, Calif.; and Santa Ana-Anaheim-Irvine, Calif., respectively.

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Housing affordability in California set a new record high in first quarter 2012 rising to 56 percent, according to C.A.R.’s first quarter Housing Affordability Index. The increase can be attributed to record-low interest rates and stabilization in home prices.

The percentage of home buyers who could afford to purchase a median-priced, existing single-family home in California rose to 56 percent in the first quarter of 2012, up from 55 percent in fourth-quarter 2011 and from 53 percent in first quarter 2011, according to C.A.R.’s Traditional Housing Affordability Index (HAI). The index was the highest since C.A.R. began tracking this statistic in 1988.

Home buyers needed to earn a minimum annual income of $55,688* (based on fourth quarter 2011 income data) to qualify for the purchase of a $276,040 statewide median-priced, existing single-family home in the first quarter of 2012. The monthly payment, including taxes and insurance on a 30-year fixed-rate loan, would be $1,392, assuming a 20 percent down payment and an effective composite interest rate of 4.16 percent. The effective composite interest rate in fourth-quarter 2011 was 4.30 percent and 4.90 percent in the first quarter of 2011.

In the San Francisco Bay Area, housing affordability rose or remained stable in all counties except Contra Costa County, where affordability declined by one percentage point. At 78 percent, San Bernardino County was the most affordable, while San Francisco County was the least affordable, with only 29 percent of households able to purchase the county’s median-priced home.

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On a statewide basis, the National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index (HOI) found that a family earning the median income could have afforded 66.2 percent of the new and existing homes that were sold during the fourth quarter, up from 63.5 percent in the third quarter. It was the highest statewide affordability level recorded since the California-specific HOI began in 2007, with the previous high being set in the first quarter of 2011 at a level of 64.6 percent. In contrast, the lowest statewide level was recorded with the inaugural state index in the first quarter of 2007 with an affordability reading of 11.2 percent.

The San Francisco, San Mateo, and Marin County metro area was California’s least affordable metro area for the 13th consecutive quarter with 37.1 percent of the homes sold being affordable to a family earning the median income, up from 32.9 percent in the third quarter. Orange County was California’s second-least affordable market at 47.4 percent, followed by Los Angeles County, 48.3 percent, as the state’s third-least affordable market.

Sutter and Yuba counties were California’s most affordable metro area with 92.5 percent affordability, up from 89.3 percent in the third quarter. Stanislaus County was the state’s second-most affordable market with 91.5 percent affordability, followed by Merced County with 91.2 percent affordability.

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