Housing slumps, but homes still pricey
SCOTT JAGOW: A closely-watched annual report on the housing market comes out today. We’re not expecting much that’s new — the housing market’s in a rut, we know that. But for many people, that’s not making homes any more affordable. Steve Tripoli has more.
STEVE TRIPOLI: Despite a sales slump, 2.3 million additional U.S. households joined a category of those with high housing costs in 2006. Nicholas Retsinas of the Joint Center for Housing Studies at Harvard led the research.
NICHOLAS RETSINAS: It is a very significant bump. We’re still seeing that disconnect between wages and housing prices.
Retsinas says stagnating wages, a growing number of house-hungry families and regional supply constraints keep prices out of reach for many. He says the affordability challenge could have ripple effects.
RETSINAS: It could also undermine economic competitiveness for a region.
That’s because high housing costs drive workers to demand higher wages.
RETSINAS: And particularly in a global economy, that can make certain businesses, certain sectors, uncompetitive.
Despite all this, the report predicts that growing immigration and high-end household wealth will keep spending on housing robust through the next eight years — but only after the oversupply from the building boom clears up.
I’m Steve Tripoli for Marketplace.
Stories You Might Like
There’s a lot happening in the world. Through it all, Marketplace is here for you.
You rely on Marketplace to break down the world’s events and tell you how it affects you in a fact-based, approachable way. We rely on your financial support to keep making that possible.
Your donation today powers the independent journalism that you rely on. For just $5/month, you can help sustain Marketplace so we can keep reporting on the things that matter to you.
