Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

First Quarter Homeownership Rates Fall In Indiana, U.S.

Barbara Brosher
/
Indiana Public Broadcasting

Home ownership rates are among some of the lowest in decades across the country and in Indiana.

In the first quarter of 2016, the number of American homeowners fell 0.2-percent from the same time last year.

It’s part of an overall downward trend in homeownership over the past ten years.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, homeownership is down nearly 6-percent in Indiana compared to 2005.

Director of the Indiana Business Research Center Jerry Conover says there was a peak in homeownership right before the great recession.

"Now we see an opportunity to see the market turn around but maybe a little stronger economic growth would be needed to get more people back into the homebuying market," he says.

More renters also impact the market. Indiana Association of Realtors President Nancy Smith says the demand drives rates up.

"The rental market really has hurt us somewhat because rent has risen about 3.7-percent, which is double the rate of wage growth," Smith says.

The Midwest saw the highest homeownership rates in the country in the first quarter of this year, with 68.9-percent of residents owning their homes.