According to ATTOM’s Third Quarter 2024 U.S. Home Equity Report, released This Week in Real Estate, nearly half of mortgaged homeowners are considered equity rich. This means they have at least 50% equity in their property, or their mortgage balance is 50% or less of the home’s market value. In the third quarter of 2024, 48.3% of mortgaged homes were equity-rich, a significant increase from the 26.5% recorded in early 2020. The market for new and existing-home sales shows a varied performance. The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and the U.S. Census Bureau reported that sales of newly built, single-family homes in September reached their highest level since May 2023, with a 4.1% month-over-month increase and a 6.3% year-over-year rise. Conversely, existing single-family home sales experienced a 0.6% month-over-month decline and a 2.3% annual decrease. Overall, total existing-home sales are down 3.5% compared to the previous year. However, the median price for existing homes rose by 3.0% from the previous year, reaching $404,500 in September, the highest for any September on record. Below are key events from the fourth week of October impacting our business:NEW HOME SALES IMPROVE IN SEPTEMBER. Sales of newly built, single-family homes in September increased 4.1% to a 738,000 seasonally adjusted annual rate from a downwardly revised August number, according to newly released data from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and the U.S. Census Bureau. The pace of new home sales in September is up 6.3% compared to a year earlier. New single-family home inventory in September remained elevated at a level of 470,000, up 8.0% compared to a year earlier. This represents a 7.6 months’ supply at the current building pace. Completed for-sale new homes rose to 108,000, the highest level since 2009. Despite challenging affordability conditions, home builder confidence edged higher in October as they anticipate that mortgage rates will gradually, in an uneven manner, moderate in the coming months. Read the full story here.HOME EQUITY GAINS LEVEL OFF. ATTOM released its third quarter 2024 U.S. Home Equity and Underwater Report on Thursday, which shows that 48.3 percent of mortgaged residential properties in the United States were considered equity-rich in the third quarter, meaning that the combined estimated amount of loan balances secured by those properties was no more than half of their estimated market values. That level was down from a recent peak of 49.2 percent hit in the second quarter of 2024. However, it was still up from 47.4 percent a year earlier and remained historically high, reflecting one of the enduring effects of a housing market boom around the nation that has lasted more than a decade. “Homeowner equity typically mirrors home-price trends, and the third quarter of this year followed that pattern. Equity remained elevated as the value of residential properties has surged consistently over the years. However, it held steady this quarter, reflecting the cooling of earlier sharp price increases,” said Rob Barber, CEO for ATTOM. Read the full story here.EXISTING-HOME SALES SLID 1.0% IN SEPTEMBER. Total existing-home sales receded 1.0% from August to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 3.84 million in September. Year-over-year, sales waned 3.5% (down from 3.98 million in September 2023). Single-family home sales edged lower by 0.6% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 3.47 million in September, down 2.3% from the previous year. “Home sales have been essentially stuck at around a four-million-unit pace for the past 12 months, but factors usually associated with higher home sales are developing,” said NAR Chief Economist Lawrence Yun. “There are more inventory choices for consumers, lower mortgage rates than a year ago and continued job additions to the economy.” Total housing inventory registered at the end of September was 1.39 million units, up 1.5% from August and 23.0% from one year ago (1.13 million). Unsold inventory sits at a 4.3-month supply at the current sales pace, up from 4.2 months in August and 3.4 months in September 2023. The median existing-home price for all housing types in September was $404,500, up 3.0% from one year ago ($392,700). The median existing single-family home price was $409,000 in September, up 2.9% from September 2023. Read the full story here.
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