The housing market in 2019 surprised nearly everyone and was unexpectedly strong. The housing market benefitted from solid, Millennial-driven, first-time homebuyer demand, surprisingly another year of low mortgage rates and continued economic growth that pushed household income higher. Consequently, potential homebuyers saw their house-buying power surge in 2019. Their challenge? Finding something to buy and, in some markets, finding something affordable to buy.
Nationally, house-buying power-adjusted home prices remain well below the 2006 housing boom peak, but national averages mask the wide differences geographically. Affordability became a mounting concern in many expensive coastal markets, like San Francisco, Los Angeles, New York and Washington D.C. The missing piece to a balanced market puzzle? Supply.
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