Fourth Quarter 2011 Housing Market Conditions

HUD’s Office of Policy Development and Research has released the U.S. Housing Market Conditions report for the fourth quarter of 2011, which updates production, marketing, and multifamily sector performance, housing affordability, homeownership, and foreclosures for the year, as well as for the fourth quarter of 2011. The annual analysis indicates that during 2011, building permits and starts declined in single-family housing, while both indicators increased significantly in the multifamily sector, and annual housing completions in both sectors were down. Shipments of manufactured homes increased 3.2 percent. In the marketing sector, indicators were mixed with a decline in new home sales and a rise in existing home sales. The median price of new homes sold rose during the year, but fell for existing homes sold. Housing affordability improved during the year, although homeownership rates for the nation and for major racial/ethnic groups declined. The housing sector component of GDP declined, but by a much slower rate than in 2010.

The report also includes comparisons with the previous quarter and the fourth quarter of 2010, profiles of economic and housing market activity in each of HUD’s 10 regions, and updates of historical trends in national and regional housing markets. This report’s feature article discusses the methodology used to incorporate American Community Survey data into the Fair Market Rents calculation process.

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