Report: Local homes becoming more affordable as wages jump and prices drop

Changes in market forces are doing what billions spent on gov't-subsidized "affordable" housing can't: making it easier for residents of all income levels to buy homes in Santa Clara County. Louis Hansen at the Merc parses the most recent data from real estate analytics firm Attom.

Single-family home expenses--mortgage, insurance and taxes--took up less of the average annual local wage in most of the Bay Area in recent months, according to Attom. The survey of wages and home prices found Bay Area houses more affordable in all but Contra Costa, Solano, and Napa counties.

Attom Chief Technology Officer Todd Teta said local wages have risen between 10% and 21% during the last year, while median home price gains have topped out at 9%, and in some cases--like San Francisco--have fallen for the first time in years.
Inventory in the San Jose metro, San Francisco and the East Bay inchedu p in May, giving shoppers more choices now and possibly slowing future price increases.

Read the whole thing here.

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