California’s housing market did not drift away from affordability overnight.
Prices for housing in the state’s major cities have been rising over the past two decades, with properties nearly quadrupling in value during the period, according to data from mortgage research platform Anytime Estimate.
San Francisco and Los Angeles paced the country in terms of value appreciation since 2000. The two cities posted the highest percentage increase in home values during the period.
San Francisco ranked first in the nation with a 290 percent increase. The median price for homes in San Francisco has gone from an estimate of $356,800 in 2000 to $1.4 million now.
Los Angeles, meanwhile, posted a 280 percent increase during the same period. This means that a Los Angeles home estimated at $231,141 in 2000 would have a projected value of $878,396 in 2022.
California cities occupied more than half of the spots in the top 10. Riverside, San Diego, San Jose and Sacramento ranked third to sixth, with value appreciation ranging from 237 percent to 278 percent. The increase tracked with the average appreciation in the state’s major metropolitan areas. During the period, homes in the state’s largest cities saw an average increase of 277 percent.
According to the study, which used data from Zillow’s Home Value Index, only 13 cities across the US saw home value increases over 200 percent. Other cities that breached the mark include Seattle (235 percent), Tampa (223 percent), Miami (220 percent), Austin (209 percent), Portland (207 percent), Phoenix (206 percent) and Denver (204 percent).
This rise in home values is part of a one-two punch with the declining purchasing power of the American homebuyer. According to the study, the average American household can only afford 56 percent of the $125,260 needed to afford the average home.