The Golden State’s housing market is currently not particularly friendly to those looking to get a foot in the door, as it is home to the majority of the nation’s 10 least-affordable markets for first-time buyers. And here in the Bay Area, conditions are even more problematic for first-time buyers, as the median income won’t buy a home in any ZIP code in three local counties.
Second-quarter home price growth outpaced wage growth throughout most of the country — including the Bay Area — further eroding already challenging affordability conditions.
Despite the state’s thin supply of housing, wage growth helped boost affordability ever-so slightly in the first quarter, while there was little relief to be found for Bay Area home shoppers.
Healthy wage growth helped boost affordability in San Francisco in the first quarter, although buying a home here still takes up the bulk of the average income. And tight inventory conditions aren’t just a problem here in the Bay Area, as the U.S. home supply drops to a record low. Check out these and other stories of note in Pacific Union’s latest Real Estate Roundup.
California home sales got a boost in the inaugural month of 2017, while the number of transactions trended lower here in the Bay Area — particularly in the more expensive counties.
Income gains helped keep California’s housing affordability in check in the fourth quarter and even resulted in some modest improvements in the Bay Area, though only one-quarter of the region’s residents can afford to purchase a home.
It’s not just the Bay Area and California that are experiencing major housing affordability challenges: it’s the entire country, and the rising mortgage rates that ensued in the wake of the U.S. presidential election are exacerbating the problem.
The Golden State’s lack of affordable housing has been in the spotlight lately, and a third-quarter index underscores that point, with nine California cities ranking among the country’s 10 least affordable markets.
A lack of affordable homes continues to present one of the largest challenges to California and buyers, so it comes as welcome news that more residents — if only slightly more — can make the mortgage payments on the average Bay Area property.
