The Dichotomy of Global Home Prices

Hong Kong and Singapore experienced a double-digit growth in the housing market. And so did Ireland - albeit in the opposite direction. In the U.S., prices dropped about 5% from last year. What gives?

1 minute read

July 11, 2011, 7:00 AM PDT

By Jeff Jamawat

The Economist reports:

"America's housing market has overshot the fair-value mark, as measured by the long-run average ratio of house prices to rents. Rents are rising: an increase in the cost of rental housing contributed to May's robust American inflation data. With home ownership looking a better deal, prices should stabilise [...] The pace of sales has been sluggish but an index of pending home sales posted a surprisingly large gain in May."

"The best news of all may be the ongoing improvement in credit conditions. Delinquencies have trended downward since late 2009. Consumer-debt payments relative to incomes are at a 17-year low and household credit scores are rising. Banks are still being stingy with credit but households are better positioned than they were to take advantage of cheaper homes."

FULL STORY: Rooms with a view

Thursday, July 7, 2011 in The Economist

Housing World United States Housing Crisis

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