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A Thousand Oaks home with a white picket fence. Homeownership is at 15-year lows. (Los Angeles Times / April 30, 2012) |
The rate is lower than the 66% from the fourth quarter and the 66.4% from the first quarter of last year, according to the Census Bureau. The rate hit a high of 69.2% in 2004, before the housing bubble burst.
The housing market has been trying to recover ever since. Several reports this month have suggested that the market has turned a corner, with pending home sales up and housing values bottoming.
But foreclosure rates are still high (and may continue to increase following a landmark settlement with loan servicers earlier this year).
In the first quarter, 74.6 million housing units were occupied by owners. Homeownership is down in every region, falling to 59.9% in the West. The region, which has the lowest rate in the country, hasn’t had such a small percentage of homeowners since at least 2006.
Rates among minorities continue to trail the nationwide numbers. Black homeownership is at 43.1%; the Hispanic rate is 46.3%
Vacancy rates at rental properties fell to 8.8% -- their lowest level in a decade. Rents, which are at a median $721, are at a post-recession high.
The median sales prices for vacant units – a number that spiked in 2007 but has slipped steadily since – is $133,700.
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Pending home sales up, 'market has clearly turned the corner'
