The Days of Our Lives: How Long Does it Take for Low and High-Income Renters to Find a Home?
On average, renters spend 10.4 weeks on the market searching for a rental home or apartment according to Zillow Group’s 2016 Consumer Housing Trends Report. But renters in tighter rental markets can spend significantly longer searching for a home – and lower-income renters often spend longer still, even in more balanced markets.
A lack of new home construction in the wake of the housing bust – especially in some of the nation’s hottest and most desirable housing markets – coupled with an aging housing stock is leading to a bump in the share of homes listed for sale in need of a little TLC.
Key Takeaways From the September Existing Home Sales Report
September existing home sales beat expectations, increasing 3.2 percent from August and 0.6 percent from a year ago, to 5.47 million units at a seasonally adjusted annual rate (SAAR), according to the National Association of Realtors. August home sales were revised downward from 5.33 million units (SAAR) to 5.30 million units, almost doubling the initially reported July-August percentage point decline from -0.9 percent to -1.5 percent.
Rapid Reaction: September Existing Home Sales
September existing home sales rose a better-than-expected 3.47 percent from August, to 5.47 million units (SAAR), reversing two consecutive monthly declines. Sales were up 0.6 percent from a year ago.
Q3 2016 Market Report: High Demand Continues to Put Pressure on Home Values
Now three-fourths of the way through 2016, the trends we’ve seen shaping the market throughout much of the year – namely, high demand for homes to buy and low supply of homes for sale, which have conspired to push up prices – look firmly entrenched.
Swings and Misses: Home Values in Presidential Swing Counties Fell More, and Have More to Recover
Swing counties – counties won by both Democratic and Republican presidential candidates during the past three presidential election cycles – have, on average, experienced a weaker housing market recovery than counties solidly in the Democratic or Republican columns.
Is Your City Building Enough Housing? Weighing Today’s Housing Promises Versus Past Housing Delivery
A lack of new housing supply has been blamed for a raft of housing issues plaguing many large U.S. housing markets, including rapid appreciation, deteriorating affordability (especially at the lower end of the market and for renters) and very limited inventory. In response, mayors’ offices nationwide have formulated plans focused on building new housing and rehabilitating and preserving what housing already exists. But are these plans enough, and are they feasible?
Contracting for-sale inventory continues to weigh on the housing market, pushing up home value appreciation and weighing on home sales. Since January 2015, existing home sales have grown year-over-year in every month save one. But that growth is flagging as the number of homes actually for sale stays low.
It’s Time to Move Forward with ST3: Vote Yes on Sound Transit Proposition 1
At Zillow, we know that investing in transit today means making a down payment on housing affordability tomorrow. That's why it’s time for our region to invest in the down payment for smart growth represented by the ST3 plan, and vote in favor of Sound Transit Proposition 1 on November’s ballot.
The Zillow Group Report on Consumer Housing Trends
To shine a light on how Americans approach home-related decisions, Zillow Group conducted the most comprehensive research ever done about home buyers, sellers, owners and renters. The results paint a rich picture of all the people involved in the process of deciding where to live—a younger and more diverse group than many appreciate.
