> House prices for 90% of households in urban areas across the United States surged in the first quarter

House prices for 90% of households in urban areas across the United States surged in the first quarter Bloomberg News, the latest report shows that in the first quarter from January to March this year, nearly 90% of urban areas in the United States had one household...

House prices surged in 90% of urban areas across the U.S. in the first quarter. According to Bloomberg, the latest report shows that in the first quarter from January to March this year, house prices for single-family homes designed for one family rose in nearly 90% of urban areas across the U.S., and the increase reached the largest increase in more than seven years. However, housing prices in most areas are still within the affordable range, which means that employment improvements and wage levels have remained stable, continuing to promote the recovery of the housing market. The National Association of Realtors (NAR) announced on the 9th that in the first quarter of this year, 133 of 150 urban areas in the United States saw median house prices increase, far more than 74 a year ago. The median house price for a family was $176,600, an increase of 11.3% from the same period last year, the largest increase since the fourth quarter of 2005. The so-called median house price means that half of the houses are sold for more than this price and half are less than this price. The report shows that the largest price increases were in Akron, Ohio, and San Francisco, California, with each rising 33% from a year ago. This was followed by California's Silicon Valley and Nevada's Reno (Reno), which rose 32%, Atlanta rose 31%, and Phoenix rose 30%. The largest decline was in Kankakee, Illinois, down 19% from a year ago. This was followed by Edison, New Jersey, which fell 8.6%, and Allentown, Pennsylvania, which fell 8.3%. NAR chief economist Lawrence Yun said in the report, "Some areas that were hit hard by the financial crisis, such as Phoenix, Sacramento, California, and Miami, have continued to rebound dramatically; on the other hand, places including Atlanta, Minneapolis, and Seattle are also beginning to show signs of upward momentum in housing prices." The continued recovery of the housing market is mainly attributed to the gradual improvement of the job market and the Federal Reserve's decision to keep mortgage interest rates at low levels. According to the Labor Department, the unemployment rate fell to 7.5% in April, a four-year low, and the number of people filing initial claims for unemployment insurance last week also fell to the lowest in five years. In addition, the inventory of listed houses in various places is still low, and buyers are bidding to buy houses, which is the main reason for the rising housing prices. According to NAR statistics, as of the first quarter, there were only 1.93 million existing homes for sale in the United States, a 16.8% decrease from the same period a year ago. Investors from institutions such as Blackstone have been aggressively purchasing single-family homes, which has also accelerated the rise in housing prices in some areas. However, NAR also pointed out that low mortgage interest rates and stable salary levels will allow potential buyers to have "ample purchasing power." Assuming that the mortgage interest rate is 3.5% and 25% of the income is used to repay the loan, a buyer who can afford to pay a 5% down payment can purchase a house with a median house price with an annual income of NT$36,500.