Housing in Crisis

So my attention has been given to housing construction, property values and the overall real estate market that it is hard to determine what is really going on. Our reports, Housing in Crisis and Square Footage Matters, reveal some important statistics about the housing market.

In short, house values will not rebound and start moving upward until the over supply in housing is absorbed. In addition, we need to start evaluating the housing market beyond the Case-Shiller Index and common refrain of the median house value.

With close to 100 million housing units in the United States, analysts need to address the housing market on a localized level and based on data parameters that are consistent and uniform across the United States.

Four such variables exist, location, land area, building size and year built. Statistical analysis needs to be presented so the general public can best understand the value of their property. Comparing a 2,500 square foot house built in 1920 to a 1,700 square foot house built in 2000 will yield different values in the same community.

We need to stop trying to take a square peg and forcing it into a round hole. Real Estate is complex, dynamic and the basis for most wealth in the United States. So why do we let a few groups dictate what the value is? The free market does this and the data needs to be available for all to use and review.