• The Q3 2017 U.S. homeownership rate rose to 63.9 percent, up from 63.5 percent in Q2 and 63.7 percent a year ago, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.
• The rental vacancy rate rose to 7.5 percent, from 7.3 percent a quarter ago and 6.8 percent last year.
• The black homeownership rate fell to 42 percent from 42.3 percent in Q2, but was up slightly from 41.3 percent a year ago. The Hispanic homeownership rate was 46.1 percent, down from 47 percent last year.

Housing costs are rising, competition among buyers is fierce and the number of homes actually available to buy is at historic lows – and still, the U.S. homeownership rate is on the rise, climbing for the second straight quarter to its highest level since 2014 and proving American home buyers are nothing if not tenacious and resourceful. If what we were seeing was largely existing homeowners trading properties between themselves, homeownership would be flat or falling. That it is rising, however modestly, proves that there is new blood entering the housing market, that renters are finding ways to transition into homeownership and more people are striking out on their own. The increase in the rental vacancy rate in Q3 provides further evidence of this shift back toward homeownership. This is encouraging, and bodes well for the continued health of the housing market overall. But this progress is by no means certain, and homeownership could still easily slide backwards if the market can’t build on today’s progress. The entire increase in the national homeownership rate was driven by the still-affordable Midwest — homeownership was flat elsewhere in the country. For-sale inventory, especially among less-expensive, entry-level homes likely to be sought by young families and first-time buyers, must improve markedly for more renters to be able to make the jump into homeownership. Saving a suitable down payment, especially as home prices skyrocket in the most popular markets, can still feel like trying to hit a target moving impossibly fast for many would-be buyers, especially to those with already lean budgets. Black and Hispanic homeownership rates largely moved sideways and are still well below 50 percent nationwide, and meaningful progress towards closing the white/minority homeownership gap has proven elusive for more than a century. Still, today’s news is positive for the country and yet another sign that all-in-all, the economy and the housing market are strong.