The average price of single-family homes—including the sale of distressed homes—in the Baton Rouge area rose 3.9% in March, compared to prices a year earlier, according to the latest CoreLogic Home Price Index report.
And though CoreLogic analysts warn of a growing affordability crisis nationwide, local market conditions are stable and appear normal, according to a spokeswoman for the California-based property analytics company.
CoreLogic’s assessment of the local market appears in line with information local RE/MAX agent Kyle Petersen presented at the annual Trends in Baton Rouge Real Estate seminar last month.
Home prices nationwide appreciated 7% year-over-year in March, CoreLogic says. And the CoreLogic HPI Forecast indicates that national home prices will increase 5.2% by March of next year. The brisk rise in prices is due to high demand, limited supply and lagging new construction, CoreLogic economists say.
An analysis of the housing stock in the 100 largest metros areas found that 37% of those markets were overvalued in March while and 28% were undervalued. The dream of homeownership is fading away for the average prospective buyer, CoreLogic says.
“Lower-priced homes are appreciating much faster than higher-priced properties, making the affordability crisis progressively worse,” says Frank Martell, CoreLogic president and CEO. “CoreLogic’s Market Condition Indicators now indicate that half of the top 50 markets in the country are overvalued because home prices in those areas have risen so much faster than incomes.”
