Home Values Increase at Unprecedented Quarterly Rate

Home values experienced a quarterly rise of 3.2% at the end of 2020—the fastest pace on record since at least 1996. For some metros, home values increased even higher. Zillow reports Austin, TX home values jumped 5.3% from the third quarter of 2020 to the fourth quarter. For year-over-year growths, Phoenix experienced a 15.3% increase in home value in 2020 from 2019. Other metros with high annual growth are Salt Lake City, Seattle, and Austin. The typical U.S. home is now worth $266,104, an 8.4% annual increase.

Monthly home value growth for the U.S. held steady at 1.1%, largely unchanged from November and the fastest month-over-month growth in the series history. Among large markets, monthly growth ranged from 0.6% in Las Vegas to 1.8% in Salt Lake City.

Rents nationwide were up 0.8% year-over-year, to $1,740/month (from $1,726/month in December 2019) — continuing a very slow recovery from October’s 2020 low of $1,728/month. Annual rent growth was stunted in 2020 as demand shifted into the for-sale market. A year ago, rents were climbing at 3.5% annually.

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