The housing market in the U.S. has steadily but slowly recovered from the crash of 2007. But despite the return to form, many experts still believe it is premature to declare a complete victory.
According to Inman, the 2007 housing market crash resulted in about $6 trillion worth of equity in homes lost. To put it in perspective, the whole amount is equivalent to the GDP of Australia multiplied six times. It affected people by the millions and majority of the American population saw their dreams turn into ashes; retirement became a nightmare, children stopped going to school, and many lost their homes because they can't keep up with maintenance and mortgage payments.
About 9.3 million people saw their properties foreclosed but for the most part, it was because many of them acquired more than they can afford to pay so even the ones that were paid for were taken away to compensate for their debts. Finally, the prices of homes have gone up to such levels that allow owners who got stuck with almost valueless properties to recovery lost equity. With this development, many pundits are expecting that 2016 or the year after will bring the value of homes to the same levels when it peaked in 2007. While most people see this as good news, the lack of a true national median still means that it is not indicative of the actual scenario on the ground where many homes are still stuck without any increase in value.
Meanwhile in a report by The Washington Post, experts predict that 2016 will be a positive year for the American housing market. Many of them believe that homeowners shall continue to experience positive gains in the prices of homes. While some are expressing fear of another bubble rising, experts say that unlike in the past, ownership now are more proportional to the income of owners.
