Available Data To Assess U.S. Housing Market Conditions

Available Data To Assess U.S. Housing Market Conditions

The U.S. Housing Market Conditions (USHMC) website offers national, regional, state, metropolitan, and local data and analyses that help researchers, practitioners, and housing officials monitor the current state of the housing market.

HUD’s Office of Policy Development and Research (PD&R) maintains the U.S. Housing Market Conditions (USHMC) website, which contains national, regional, state, metropolitan, and local data and analysis. The USHMC website showcases the work of economists in PD&R’s Housing and Demographic Analysis Division (HDAD) and Economic and Market Analysis Division (EMAD). The statistics and trends available on the USHMC website help researchers, practitioners, and housing officials monitor the current state of the housing market.

National Housing Market Data

HDAD releases monthly and quarterly statistical reports on national trends in housing markets. The reports examine statistics and data on housing conditions through charts, narrative, and tables and highlight the major developments. The quarterly National Housing Market Summary highlights trends using indicators in four major categories: housing supply, housing demand, finance and investment, and ownership and vacancy. The housing supply category includes data on permits, housing under construction, new and existing homes for sale, and manufactured home shipments. Housing demand includes the number of new and existing homes sold, home sales prices, the number of multifamily housing units completed and absorbed, the median asking rent or price of multifamily housing, homeownership and rental affordability, manufactured home placements, and perspectives from builders on market activity. Financial information on mortgage interest rates, delinquency rates, and mortgage insurance is also available, and users can compare data from previous quarters to gauge progress. Data on national homeownership and vacancy rates, the current housing stock, and the number of households can help officials and practitioners match housing supply with demand. For example, the latest National Housing Market Summary report, based on data from the third quarter of 2019, shows a rise in sales for both new and existing housing and an increase in new construction of single-family homes. In addition, the report indicates that the mortgage delinquency rate decreased in the third quarter, and the U.S. homeownership rate increased after declining for two consecutive quarters.

The monthly National Housing Market Indicators cover key statistics and trends on the state of the nation's housing market. The latest Housing Market Indicators Monthly Update, published in December 2019, shows year-over-year house price increases were fairly steady, with annual gains ranging from 2 to 5 percent, and mortgage rates are near three-year lows.

Regional and Local Housing Market Data

An interactive map allows users to find housing market data on any of HUD’s 10 regions. Visitors can select a region to access the regional narratives for that area, which are updated quarterly. At the local level, USHMC provides Comprehensive Housing Market Analysis reports, which are in-depth analyses of market conditions for defined housing market areas, and Housing Market Profiles, which summarize economic, sales, and rental market conditions for metropolitan areas nationwide. Market-at-a-Glance reports, which are updated monthly and provide snapshots of economic, population, and housing market data, are available at the regional, state, metropolitan, and county levels.

Data at Your Fingertips

For further ease of use, USHMC key indicators data for the nation and Census Regions are also available through the USHMC mobile app. The mobile app offers five categories: quarterly key indicators, supply data, demand data, finance and investment data, and ownership and vacancy data. The quarterly key indicators category is useful for showing trends across different housing statistics such as new homes for sale, housing permits, and homes under construction. The app’s other categories offer interactive charts. Such data can help housing officials and affordable housing advocates evaluate the state of housing at the national and Census Region levels and determine how to allocate resources to ensure housing stability going forward.

Visit the USHMC website to stay up-to-date with the latest housing market data and analyses.