C.A.R. releases Q1 2011 Housing Affordability Index

Low interest rates, home prices contribute to higher affordability throughout California, C.A.R. reports. LOS ANGELES (May 12) – Housing affordability continued to improve throughout the state in the first quarter of 2011, led by low interest rates and home prices, the CALIFORNIA ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS® (C.A.R.) reported today. The percentage of buyers who could afford to purchase a median-priced, single-family home in California rose to 53 percent in the first quarter of 2011, up from 50 percent in fourth-quarter 2010 and 50 percent in first- quarter 2010, according to C.A.R.’s Traditional Housing Affordability Index (HAI). C.A.R.’s HAI measures the percentage of all households that can afford to purchase the median-priced, single-family home in California. READ More…