North Las Vegas home prices rising faster than incomes
In a report by the Associated Press, analysis of the housing market indicates that national median home prices are rising faster than median incomes. The gap, which has been growing since 1990, is contributing to the struggling housing market and Southern Nevada seems to be matching the national trend.
According to the report, the national median income grew 60 percent between 1990 and 2006, while median home prices more than doubled. Locally that disparity leaned toward the bleaker side as the median income in North Las Vegas doubled, while home prices increased fivefold.
The current housing slump has been likened to the dot-com bubble of the late 1990s, where rising stock prices gave way to riskier lending, which in turn lead to a spectacular bust. Similar to the dot-com bubble, current rising home prices have been attributed to risky lending and low interest rates, rather than actual increases in income.
As bad as the housing slump may be right now, it still hasn’t bottomed out and it’ll be awhile longer before the market begins its recovery.
