Mining boom partly blamed for greater mortgage defaults, US economist finds Read more
The official figure for foreclosures was down 4% on a year earlier, compared with a 4% rise in December 2013 and a 2.5% increase in November. The Federal Reserve, for example, on Tuesday said a fall in coal prices had helped lift housing activity in December, but did not go on to say whether they are at risk of getting worse.
Falling gas prices have fuelled a housing rally and t파라오 카지노he bank estimates the supply of housing will reach its target, even if house prices rise faster than incomes.
As of Tuesday, the price of a median home – a unit that includes land used primarily for parking, and that is owned by someone – had risen by 8.3% from a year earlier, to $278,000, the highest since July 2008. The median price of a home with attached units rose 4.1% from a year earlier, to $298,000.
The rise in house prices has caused a jump in mortgage rates to historic lows.
Citi’s Joe Sestana said the rate of home price appreciation was not linked to the energy sector’s boom, but noted the “fear of a housing bust at any time is understandable”. However, he warned that “it’s a scary thought to those of us in business in a time of uncertainty”.
House prices rose 2.6% on average in December from a year earlier. The fastest growth came at the start of the month, when they reached an average annual pace of 3.3%.
The last time house prices in some major US cities hit such levels was in 1995 – according to the Realtor Association.
The housing recovery is part of “a long term trend that the market has been pushing higher into the 20s, 40s and 50s”, and is not due to be reversed, said David M. Rosner, head of economics for IHS Global Insight in New York.
“As long as housing conditions don’시흥안마t deteriorate further, or the housing market stays strong, the housing recovery is l광주출장안마ikely to continue,” Rosner said.