In today’s housing market, the power is very clearly in the hands of the seller. In April, First American Data & Analytics’ nominal house price index increased 16.2 percent year over year, the fastest pace since 2005. Rapid appreciation is driving declines in affordability, despite rising incomes and lower mortgage rates. Nationally, according ... Read More ›

Housing affordability on a year-over-year basis declined in March for the first time since January 2019, ending a more than two-year streak of rising affordability. The long run of increasing affordability snapped, even as two of the three key drivers of the Real House Price Index (RHPI), household income and mortgage rates, swung in favor of ... Read More ›

The three components of the Real House Price Index (RHPI) are household income, mortgage rates and a nominal house price index. The RHPI adjusts nominal house prices according to changes in income and interest rates, which together make up consumer house-buying power. When incomes rise, house-buying power rises as well. However, when mortgage ... Read More ›

First American Deputy Chief Economist Odeta Kushi was interviewed on CNBC yesterday, discussing the outlook for housing affordability amid rising mortgage rates and expectations for the spring home-buying season. Read More ›

Soaring nominal house prices dominate recent headlines and for good reason. It is true that nominal house prices are the highest they have ever been, over 22 percent higher than the housing boom peak in 2006, according to the First American Data & Analytics House Price Index. The acceleration in the pace of annual house price growth began in ... Read More ›

First American Deputy Chief Economist Odeta Kushi was interviewed on Yahoo! Finance earlier this month, explaining why women homeownership rates are on the rise and the outlook for the housing market in the year ahead. Read More ›