Zillow: Gains in Housing Now Make It Worth $31.8 Trillion

A banner year.

Another $2 trillion was added to the housing market in 2017, brought to a collective $31.8 trillion, according to a recently released report by Zillow. On an annual basis, home values increased 6.5 percent last year; values last expanded at a faster pace—8 percent—in 2013.

The additional $2 trillion, put another way, doubles Apple’s recent $900 billion valuation.

“This was a record year for home values, as the national housing stock reached record heights in 2017,” says Aaron Terrazas, senior economist at Zillow. “Strong demand from buyers and the ongoing inventory shortage keep pushing values higher, especially in some of the nation’s booming coastal markets.”

Los Angeles, New York and San Francisco were the most valuable major markets last year, at $2.7 trillion, $2.6 trillion and $1.4 trillion, respectively. No other exceeded $1 trillion. Columbus, Ohio, grew at the quickest pace, 15.1 percent, followed by San Jose, Calif., at 13.5 percent, Dallas-Fort Worth, Texas, at 12.3 percent, Seattle, Wash., at 11.7 percent, and Tampa, Fla., at 11.3 percent.

More than $485 billion, meanwhile, was spent on rent in 2017, the report shows. The figure is a 1 percent, or $4.9 billion, increase from 2016.

“Renters spent more than ever on rent this year, but the amount they spent grew at the slowest pace in recent years as more renters transitioned into homeownership and new rental supply slowed rent growth across the country,” Terrazas says.

According to Terrazas, housing this year is likely to maintain the status quo, even with changes to the tax code.

“Despite recent changes to federal tax laws that have historically made homeownership financially attractive, the long-term dynamics pushing up home values and rents are unlikely to change significantly in 2018,” Terrazas says.

For more information, please visit www.zillow.com.

Suzanne De Vita is RISMedia’s online news editor. Email her your real estate news ideas atsdevita@rismedia.com.

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