The Rising Influence of Rising Affluence

[DewDiligence]

(PCL)—US exurbs begin housing comeback:

http://online.wsj.com/articles/affordable-homes-drive-rebound-in-exurbia-1411061875

The exurbs are starting to make a comeback, signaling that the housing market's recovery is slowly spreading beyond major cities.

Exurbs went bust earlier and harder than most other places during the housing downturn. That is partly because job losses, mortgage defaults and high gasoline prices hit exurban families particularly hard, hampering home sales and construction in the far-flung neighborhoods. Builders, blaming weak demand in the exurbs, shifted to building on more expensive land closer to city centers.

…Many economists deemed an exurban recovery unlikely for several years. Yet many of the areas, specifically in the South and West, are rebounding earlier than expected due to one main reason: relatively inexpensive home prices.

…The nascent exurban revival is occurring as home construction is slowly ramping up on a broader scale. Commerce Department data released Thursday show that builders started construction of 437,100 single-family homes in the first eight months of this year, up nearly 3.1% from the same period last year.