Boston

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?

Sarah Mikhitarian • Oct 19 2016

Zillow Housing Confidence Index: Homeowners Got Swagger, But Buyers Increasingly Discouraged

Homeowners have a lot of swagger in today’s market, and for good reason – home values are rising, demand is high and homes are selling very quickly. But the same trends helping to buoy homeowner confidence are also proving increasingly discouraging for potential buyers, particularly among current renters, a critical imbalance that could have important impacts on the market going forward.

Svenja Gudell • Sep 01 2016

Rent Affordability by Tier: High Rents Aren’t a Problem If You Earn Enough to Afford them

As growth in rents outpaces growth in incomes, rent affordability (the share of the typical American’s income that goes to rent) has steadily deteriorated over the past five years – from a historic average of 26 percent, to roughly 30 percent currently. But focusing only on medians can sometimes hide more than it reveals. In this case, there are sharply different trends at the top and at the bottom of the market.

Aaron Terrazas • Aug 31 2016

Boston Strong: What’s Driving Wage and Job Growth in the Nation’s Original Tech Hub

It may be hard to remember, but 30 years ago, America’s technology heartland wasn’t the San Francisco Bay area – it was around Boston Harbor. And decades after the nation’s tech consciousness shifted west, the technology sector still plays a vital role in Eastern Massachusetts.

Sarah Mikhitarian • May 19 2016

February Market Report: Peeking at Home Value Peaks

Median home values in more than a quarter of the nation’s metro housing markets are currently, or were recently (within the last year), at peak and as high as they’ve ever been, according to the February Zillow Real Estate Market Report. But what do home value peaks really mean?

Svenja Gudell • Mar 24 2016

January Market Report: Low Inventory Limiting Options for Buyers Nationwide

For months, the story in the national housing market has been about the differences in housing market performance in various local markets – some markets are super hot, some a little more sedate and some still struggling to recover – depending on local economic fundamentals. But if there’s one constant across almost every market nationwide, it’s lack of inventory.

Svenja Gudell • Feb 23 2016

Are Local Real Estate Bubble Markets Re-Emerging? Experts Agree to Disagree

The national housing market on the whole is expected to cool off in coming years, even as conditions in a handful of hot markets have some experts worried about local real estate bubbles. And there is no clear consensus on the extent of the national cool-down, or the potential timeline for local bubble risks.

• Dec 09 2015

The 5 Markets Most Likely to Be Impacted by New 2016 Conforming Loan Limits

New 2016 conforming loan limits won't affect a majority of U.S. homes. But 61,000 homes, mostly clustered around 5 large markets, could be impacted.

Aaron Terrazas • Nov 30 2015