NEW YORK, NY – S&P Dow Jones Indices released the latest results for the S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller Indices, the leading measure of U.S. home prices. Data released for June 2017 shows that home prices continued their rise across the country over the last 12 months.

YEAR-OVER-YEAR

The S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller U.S. National Home Price NSA Index, covering all nine U.S. census divisions, reported a 5.8% annual gain in June, up from 5.7% the previous month. The 10-City Composite posted a 4.9% annual increase, down from 5.0% the previous month. The 20-City Composite reported a 5.7% year-over-year gain, the same as the previous month.

Seattle, Portland, and Dallas reported the highest year-over-year gains among the 20 cities. In June, Seattle led the way with a 13.4% year-over-year price increase, followed by Portland with 8.2%, and Dallas with a 7.7% increase. Nine cities reported greater price increases in the year ending June 2017 versus the year ending May 2017. 

MONTH-OVER-MONTH

Before seasonal adjustment, the National Index posted a month-over-month gain of 0.9% in June. The 10-City and 20-City Composites both reported a 0.7% increase in June. After seasonal adjustment, the National Index recorded a 0.4% month-over-month increase. The 10-City Composite remained stagnant with no month-over-month increase. The 20-City Composite posted a 0.1% month-over-month increase. All 20 cities reported increases in June before seasonal adjustment; after seasonal adjustment, 14 cities saw prices rise.

ANALYSIS

“The trend of increasing home prices is continuing,” says David M. Blitzer, Managing Director and Chairman of the Index Committee at S&P Dow Jones Indices. “Price increases are supported by a tight housing market. Both the number of homes for sale and the number of days a house is on the market have declined for four to five years. Currently the months-supply of existing homes for sale is low, at 4.2 months. In addition, housing starts remain below their pre-financial crisis peak as new home sales have not recovered as quick as existing home sales.”

“Rising prices are the principal factor driving affordability down. But, other drivers of affordability are more favorable: the national unemployment rate is down, and the number of jobs made continues to grow at a robust pace, rising to close to 200,000 per month. Wages and salaries are increasing, maintaining a growth rate a bit ahead of inflation. Mortgage rates, up slightly since the end of 2016, are under 4%. Given current economic conditions and the tight housing market, an immediate reversal in home price trends appears unlikely.”

More than 27 years of history for these data series is available, and can be accessed in full by going to www.homeprice.spdji.com. Additional content on the housing market can also be found on S&P Dow Jones Indices’ housing blog: www.housingviews.com.

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LOS ANGELES, CA – KTGY Architecture + Plotting unveiled today the preliminary design for a new mixed-use development that was selected as part of Salt Lake City’s plot to revitalize its downtown core developed by The Domain Companies, one of the nation’s leading real estate investment and development firms specializing in sustainable mixed-use development, and the GIV Group, which combines a non-profit and entrepreneurial approach to community development. Called The Exchange, the design envisions a pedestrian- and transit-oriented mixed-use district focused on innovation and includes “startup” micro-unit apartments, business incubator space, creative office space, affordable and market-rate apartments and ground-level retail and restaurant space.

“This site represents one of the greatest development opportunities in downtown Salt Lake and KTGY is thrilled to be teamed up with The Domain Companies and the GIV Group on a project that can play such a transformative role within the city,” said Keith McCloskey, LEED AP, executive director, in KTGY’s Los Angeles office.

The Domain Companies Principal Chris Papamichael said, “We have been looking to break into the Salt Lake City multifamily market with the right development for some time now and are excited to kick it off with such an impactful development as The Exchange. We knew that there would be fierce competition for the site and assembling an all-star team would be key to being awarded the site; having KTGY as part of our design team was integral to our success.”

“Our proposal for the RFP echoed what we heard from the Salt Lake City leaders about a desire to make a dynamic, vibrant, walkable urban district with a focus on innovation and creative forms of financing,” McCloskey said. “Located immediately across the street from the iconic public library site on 400 South, everything about the proposed design works to support these concepts through the integration of widened sidewalks and ‘parklets’ at the project edges to the inclusion of incubator space for startup businesses and creative co-working environments for residents and the broader community.”

The new development is located on two city-owned sites on 2.24 acres at 320 East 400 South and 338 E. 400 South. According to McCloskey, the plot is intended to replace three under-used retail and commercial buildings with nine tales of mixed-use residential, retail and co-working spaces. The parcels include the ancient five-tale Barnes Bank building and the two-tale Salt Lake Roasting Company directly north and east of the city’s public safety building, and a 25,000-square-foot surface parking lot.

The current design includes a total of 412 mixed-income residential apartment units, with unit sizes ranging from 325 square feet for the micro-units up to 1,294 square feet for a three-bedroom apartment home. The plot also includes 20,240 sq. ft. of retail and restaurant space and 30,741 sq. ft. of office space.

The design features two buildings, divided by Blair Street, McCloskey noted. “The nine-tale mixed-use building sits on the corner of University Avenue and South 300 East Street, and wraps a central resident amenity courtyard. Ground-floor retail engages the street, inviting pedestrians to explore the newly-made streetscape. Above the open south-facing courtyard are seven tales of mixed-income apartments. The convex building form responds to the dynamic curves of its neighboring buildings, the Salt Lake City public library and the adjacent Public Safety Building while at the same time maintaining a timeless identity and simplicity,” said McCloskey.

McCloskey adds that the “L-shaped” design of the smaller five-tale building navigates an existing structure and is comprised of two parts. Along University Avenue, the smaller building features ground-floor business incubator space with three floors of co-working and creative office space above. “Tucked away from the busy street, the building transitions to a residential use delivering 124 micro-units that introduce innovative design to maximize living space and deliver affordability. The base material for both buildings is a clean precast panel that relates directly to the color and texture of the library, tying the new development with the established neighborhood,” McCloskey said.

“The project looks to transform this district through the infusion of a diverse set of programs that will provide activated street frontages and a variety of housing typologies at all levels of affordability,” McCloskey said. The development will also be built to LEED Gold standards and will be Energy Star certified.

The new development is expected to break ground in fall 2018.

The Domain Companies is one of the nation’s leading real estate investment and development firms specializing in sustainable mixed-use development. Since its founding in 2004, The Domain Companies has been involved in the development of over $1 billion of an impactful mixed-use real estate involving a diverse range of product types and markets.

Celebrating 25 years, KTGY Architecture + Plotting is an international award-winning full-service architecture and plotting firm delivering innovation, artistry and attention to detail across multiple offices and studios, ensuring that clients and communities get the best the firm has to offer no matter the building type or location.

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SEATTLE, WA – Renters who earn the least cannot afford even the cheapest market-rate rentals in the nation’s largest metro areas, according to a Zillow analysis of multifamily rents and Census income data.

The rent affordability crisis is especially tough for the lowest-earning Americans. A common rule of thumb is that people shouldn’t spend more than 30 percent of their income on housing, allowing them to save for emergencies and afford other expenses. In the largest 25 metros in the United States, the typical rents require a much larger share than that recommended amount for renters whose incomes fall into the bottom third of the income distribution, even when they are looking at the cheapest apartments on the market.

Spending such a significant part of income on rent means making other financial sacrifices. Putting aside money for an emergency is a luxury many renters don’t have – 68.8 percent don’t have enough savings to cover three months of living expenses. Instead, the main financial concern for most renters is affording basic bills, like food, utilities, and gasoline, in addition to the rent.

From 2011 to 2016, rents increased much more than incomes did, and this is especially evident at the lower end of the market. Even in markets where lower incomes saw significant gains, rents in those markets saw much larger jumps. For example, the monthly earnings among the lowest third of incomes in San Francisco increased by about $485 between June 2011 and June 2016, but over that same time period, apartment rents grew $1,145.

“Any renter can tell you how hard it is to save up extra cash while spending an increasing part of their income on rent, but it’s much worse for those who make the least,” said Zillow Chief Economist Dr. Svenja Gudell. “Income inequality is growing in the United States, and this shows how high housing costs contribute to preventing people from moving up the ladder. There are several factors at play here, including wage growth dampened by the recession and increased demand on the rental market. Without a long-term solution to affordable housing, the gap between the haves and have-nots will continue to widen.”

The median rent for apartments in the least expensive third of the market required more than 100 percent of the typical income for the lowest-earning people who live in Los Angeles. People who are unable to get a housing subsidy likely must double up or go further from their jobs to find more affordable rents.

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