IE Business Daily Business news for the Inland Empire.
U.S. home prices rose 10 percent in January, the highest year-over-year increase in more than seven years.
Low mortgage rates left over from 2020 encouraged first-time homebuyers to try the housing market, allowing home price to remain strong despite economic uncertainty, according to CoreLogic in Irvine.
“Record-low mortgage rates were a significant driving force behind last year’s rebound in housing market activity,” said Frank Martell, CoreLogic’s president and chief executive officer, in the statement. “However, heavy competition for the few houses on the market drove home prices to historic highs, and mortgage rates are no longer enough to sway the affordability challenges for consumers.”
In the Inland Empire, January home prices were up 12.4 percent year-over-year, and one percent compared with December 2020, according to CoreLogic.
“Affordability continues to be a problem with competition for limited housing supply in the Inland Empire,” said Carlos Rodriguez, Executive Officer of the Building Industry Association Southern California, Baldy View Chapter. “One way to address the issue is by removing regulatory barriers on residential construction to help increase availability so more families can take part in the American Dream of homeownership.”
