HUD Articles

The Federal Housing Finance Agency published the 2024 Q1 Housing Price Index report and national data shows
home prices rose 6.6 percent between the first quarter of 2023 and the first quarter of 2024. House prices were up 1.1 percent compared to the fourth quarter of 2023. Nationally, the U.S. housing market has experienced positive annual appreciation each quarter since the start of 2012.

The five-year home appreciation in our region was between 32.01% and 41.71% with all of our regional  Metropolitan Statistical Areas experiencing positive gains.

In the past year, home prices in our markets have increased: +3.08% in Iowa City; +8.25% in Cedar Rapids; and +8.05% in the Quad Cities. This compares to other cities: Des Moines +5.28% and Chicago +7.89%. Of course,
there is variation based on price range and location of properties, with more affordable properties appreciating
more and expensive properties appreciating less.

“U.S. house prices continued to grow at a steady pace in the first quarter,” said Dr. Anju Vajja, Deputy Director for 
FHFA’s Division of Research and Statistics. “Over the last six consecutive quarters, the low inventory of homes for
sale continued to contribute to house price appreciation despite mortgage rates that hovered around 7 percent.”

“Home prices in our markets continue to show healthy growth, driven by limited inventory and steady demand.
This positive trend mirrors national patterns and highlights the resilience of our local housing market. The current
supply and demand dynamics generally favor sellers in most locations and price points in our region. Demand
remains strong despite higher interest rates, and while inventory has risen slightly, we are still averaging less than
2 months of housing inventory. This means we can expect appreciation to exceed the 20-year regional average of
3.5% in the foreseeable future.”

“Additionally, with mortgage rates projected to come down slightly over the next year, we anticipate further boosts  in demand, continuing this positive trend. Buyers can enter the market with confidence, knowing their investment will grow steadily,” said Chris Beason, President of Ruhl&Ruhl Realtors.