Forget the Open Floor Plan--It's Time to Bring Back Walls

U.S. existing-home sales reversed course in December, rising 3.6% from the previous month’s pace, according to the  National Association of Realtors. Total existing-home sales – completed transactions that include single-family homes, townhomes, condominiums, and co-ops – rose to a seasonally adjusted annualized rate of 5.54 million. This means sales are 10.8% above December 2018’s rate. Lawrence Yun, NAR’s chief economist said home sales fluctuated a great deal last year. “I view 2019 as a neutral year for housing in terms of sales,” Yun said. “Home sellers are positioned well, but prospective buyers aren’t as fortunate. Low inventory remains a problem, with first-time buyers affected the most.” In December, total homes available for sale came in at 1.4 million, down a whopping 14.6% from November and 8.5% from 2018’s rate of 1.53 million. There was a 3-month supply of unsold inventory at the current sales pace, down from 3.7 in November and Dec...

The cheapest financing in more than three years is making it easier for first-time buyers to afford a home. A tiny bit easier. Instead of having just enough income needed to buy a median-priced starter home at current mortgage rates, they now have a small buffer, according to Lawrence Yun, chief economist of the  National Association of Realtors . In 2019’s second quarter, first-timers had 100% of the median household income to buy a home, as measured by NAR’s First-Time Homebuyer Affordability Index that crunches income, financing rates and home prices. By the third quarter, the index showed they had 105% of the income they needed. “The low mortgage  rates  are clearly helping the market conditions,” Yun said in an interview with HousingWire. “Home prices consistently rising at a faster pace than people’s income growth has hurt, but because of the historically low rates, it’s providing marginal opportunities for first-time buyers.” Lower mortgage  rates ...

The median price for a single-family home in California jumped 10% in December, the biggest year-over-year gain in more than four years, as low  mortgage rates  and a shortage of homes for sale boosted competition for properties. The state’s median home price was $615,090, more than double the U.S. median, according to the  California Association of Realtors . Home sales rose 7.4% compared with December 2018. “California experienced an unusual jump in its median price at the end of the year when the market is supposed to cool down,” said CAR Chief Economist Leslie Appleton-Young. “The surge in price is a byproduct of the imbalance between supply and demand as market competition continues to heat up.” The  supply  of homes for sale, measured as the amount of time it would take to sell off existing stock, shrank to 2.5 months from 3.5 months a year earlier. The  Los Angeles  metro area saw the biggest jump in home prices, up 10% from a year earl...

Homeowners often add or upgrade an island as part of a kitchen renovation, choosing features that make the island both stylish and functional. Cabinet styles, countertops and colors that differ from the rest of the kitchen are commonly used on the island, according to new research from Houzz. The  2020 U.S. Houzz Kitchen Trends Study  gathered information from nearly 2,600 Houzz users who had completed a kitchen remodel or addition in the previous 12 months, were working on one or were planning to start one in the next three months. Read on to find out what homeowners are choosing for their kitchen islands. Joni Spear Interior Design The island has become a regular feature in renovated kitchens. Erin Carlyle More Than 60% of Renovated Kitchens Feature Islands Islands remain a mainstay of renovated kitchens, with 61% of upgraded kitchens featuring them. (The numbers in the chart have been rounded down.) One-third of renovating homeowners remodeling their kitch...

Three of the top five affordable metro areas in the nation during the third quarter were in Illinois: Decatur, Springfield and Peoria. That’s according to a  National Association of Realtors  ranking that put Wichita Falls, Texas, at No. 4 and the Waterloo-Cedar Falls, Iowa, metro area at No. 5. At the bottom of the list, the nation’s five least-affordable metro areas were all in California: the San Jose-Santa Clara metro area was the worst, followed by the Anaheim-Irving area. The third-worst was Los Angeles, followed by San Francisco and San Diego. Eroding  affordability  and tight  inventory  could leave some of the nation’s previously fast-growing metro areas unable to sustain economic growth because workers need a place to live, said Lawrence Yun, NAR’s chief economist. “Even fast-growing markets could be hurt and unable to further expand because of weakening affordability conditions,” he said. “We must improve affordability by building more h...

The housing market could continue to prop up the US economy in 2020 even if concerns about Iran and trade talks with China dampen confidence for American businesses. A healthy job market and low mortgage rates have made homes more   affordable for many consumers, although values crept steadily higher throughout 2019. In October, housing prices rose 3.3% annually, according to the most recent S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller US National Home Price NSA Index, which came out last month. Phoenix, Tampa and Charlotte posted particularly strong gains. And homebuilder Lennar reported solid fourth quarter earnings Wednesday, citing healthy demand across the country. In a conference call with analysts, Lennar executive chairman Stuart Miller said that results were good despite "the constant noise from the current election cycle" and "global tensions." "The indicators that we see from our customers reflect confidence in the stability of the economy and in th...