We recently compiled a list of the 25 Cities Where Home Prices Are Falling Most Now and in this article we will talk about the city where home prices experienced the largest decline over the past year.
Real Estate in the US: An Overview
According to a market report by Zillow, the US national home value was recorded at $359,402 in March, up 4.4% year-over-year. The typical monthly mortgage payment of $1,908 has also increased by 11.6% since 2023. Home prices have grown the most in San Jose by 2.9%, in San Francisco by 2.4%, in Seattle by 2.1%, in Milwaukee by 2.1%, and in Buffalo by 1.9%. On the contrary, home values have dropped on a yearly basis in New Orleans by 7%, in Austin by 3.6%, and in San Antonio by 1.8%. You can also take a look at some of the least affordable metros for homebuyers in the US.
Affordability Concerns Persist
On March 8, CNN reported that half of the American renters cannot afford the monthly payment while many have let go of the idea of owning a home. In order to fix the national housing crisis, President Joe Biden seems optimistic about the situation after he announced $10,000 in refundable credit for middle-class homebuyers. It is expected that this initiative will enable 3.5 million buyers to settle in their first home. In addition to this, Biden’s plan includes a one-year tax credit to middle-class families who will be selling their homes priced below the area’s median home price. To lessen the gap between the housing supply and demand in the market, building and renovation of more than 2 million homes might also take place. The aforementioned proposals will aim to solve two major problems that have led to affordability concerns, as mentioned by the President. The first problem pertains to the existing limited supply of houses on the market which can simply not cater to the demand while the second problem is the high mortgage rates. Homeowners who settled in their houses at low mortgage rates during the pandemic feel reluctant to sell their homes right now since they will have to pay a higher mortgage on a new house.
Housing advocates in the US have appreciated Biden’s interest in the prevailing housing affordability problems penetrating the country. However, the above plan is currently battling with some resistance as others in the housing industry are of the opinion that individual tax credits that increase the home demand will further bring the home prices up without solving the issue. Some of the hurdles for new construction in the American housing market have been higher interest rates as well as zoning and other regulations.
In the case of the rental market, the average US rent sits at $1,997 which has raised affordability concerns among renters. As compared to the pre-pandemic period, rents are up by 31.4%. Furthermore, the nation’s rent growth has exceeded the wage growth. Renters need to earn nearly $80,000 to comfortably afford the aforementioned typical rent. The required income for paying rent has climbed 3.7% year-over-year. As of April, the median household has to spend 29.2% of their income on a new rental. The highest annual rent rises have been recorded at 7.7% for Providence, 7% for Louisville, 6.5% for Buffalo, 6.5% for Cleveland, and 6.2% for Hartford. Simultaneously, you can view some of the most affordable cities for US renters.
Home Price Dynamics in the Market
On May 17, The New York Post reported Florida and Texas as the two states that tend to offer better conditions to homebuyers in the US. Recently constructed homes have been listed in these markets thereby adding to their inventories. During the month of April, more homes were on the market in multiple Florida and Texas metros including Austin, San Antonio, Dallas, and Tampa. Although these markets have cooled a bit, they still lag behind the pre-pandemic dynamics. Major cities with the highest home price increases since the pandemic have been previously discussed.
On the other hand, an analysis by the National Association of Realtors revealed that more than 90% of the US metro markets saw home price increases during the first quarter of 2024. 30% of the total tracked metros recorded double-digit price gains during the quarter. The shortage of inventory was cited as the main reason behind the rising prices. While prices went up 3.3% in the South, they also climbed by 11% in the Northeast, 7.4% in the Midwest, and 7.3% in the West on a year-over-year basis. Eight of the top 10 most costly US housing markets were based in California. Some of these Californian markets and their respective price gains were reported to be 13.7% for San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, 14.2% for Anaheim-Santa Ana-Irvine, 14% for San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, 11.5% for San Diego-Carlsbad, 7% for San Luis Obispo-Paso Robles, 7.6% for Oxnard-Thousand Oaks-Ventura, 4.1% for Salinas, and 10.2% for Los Angeles-Long Beach-Glendale.
Real Estate Options to Pursue
Amidst the national affordability crisis, reputable American homebuilders such as Lennar Corporation (NYSE:LEN) and KB Home (NYSE:KBH) continue to offer reasonable options for homebuyers to settle in convenient locations.
Lennar Corporation (NYSE:LEN) is an American home construction company that constructs affordable, move-up, and active adult homes primarily under the Lennar brand name. It also engages in the development of high-quality multifamily rental properties. On May 29, Lennar Corporation (NYSE:LEN) reported the initiation of sales at Franklin Townes, the company’s first community in Johnston County. Move-in ready homes in the community have prices starting from the mid $200,000s. Those who wish to seek a small-town charm while being close to downtown Raleigh can resort to the community.
KB Home (NYSE:KBH) is one of the largest home builders in the United States. The firm builds quality homes that are customized as per the buyer’s preference and available budget. On May 24, KB Home (NYSE:KBH) announced the grand opening of its recent home community situated in southwest Las Vegas. The new community ‘Brevi’ offers homes priced from the mid $400,000s. Residents can easily access Highway 160, Interstate 15, and Interstate 215. For recreation, they can also visit the nearby Exploration Peak Park and Mountain’s Edge Regional Park
Now that we have analyzed the prevailing conditions in the US housing market, let’s find out the city where home prices are falling most now.
The City Where Home Prices are Falling Most
Our Methodology:
In order to compile a list of the 25 cities where home prices are falling most now, we sourced data from Zillow. We utilized Zillow’s Metro Explorer to see the metro-wise change in median list prices over the span of 1 year. The median list prices are available as of March. Hence, all US cities that experienced major price declines since March 2023 have been ranked on our list. Please note that we have excluded those cities that recorded minor declines in home prices for instance those lower than 1%.
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The Top US City Where Home Prices Are Falling Most Now
1. Santa Cruz, California
Year-Over-Year Change in Median List Price: -7.7%
Santa Cruz ranks at the top of the 25 cities where home prices are falling most. The city is located in Santa Cruz County in Northern California. The city offers a high median list price of $1,199,000 as recorded in March. As compared to the pre-pandemic time period, the median list price in Santa Cruz has climbed by 34.1%. However, this price declined by 7.7% between March 2023 and March 2024. Mentioning the trend of falling home prices in Santa Cruz, Redfin has also reported that homes in the market are currently selling for a median price which is 10.7% lower as compared to 2023. The market is somewhat competitive since average homes sell for approximately 1% above the list price while hot homes sell for nearly 5% above the list price. The migration trends for Santa Cruz also depict the interest of local homebuyers in the markets. From February to April, 78% of Santa Cruz homebuyers looked to stay within the Santa Cruz metropolitan area while only 22% wanted to move out. The top three metros from where people are moving to Santa Cruz include New York, Santa Barbara, and Pensacola. Another relief for those interested in buying a home in the city is that the active inventory has gone up by 20.5% year-over-year. In terms of new listings, a 22.7% rise has been recorded over the past 1 year.
To learn about other cities where home prices are falling most, you can check out our detailed on the 25 Cities Where Home Prices Are Falling Most Now.
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Disclosure: None. This article is originally published on Insider Monkey.