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April 2024 » thefivestar.com 77 April 2024 J O U R N A L said Dr. Selma Hepp, Chief Economist for CoreLogic. "And while the accelera- tion continues to reflect the residual im- pact of strong appreciation in early 2023, the annual rate of growth is expected to taper off in coming months." Key Findings of the CoreLogic HPI/ HPI Forecast: » U.S. single-family home prices (in- cluding distressed sales) increased by 5.8% year over year in January 2024 compared with January 2023. On a month-over-month basis, home prices increased by 0.1% compared with December 2023. » In January, the annual appreciation of detached properties (6%) was 1.1 percentage points higher than that of attached properties (4.9%). » CoreLogic's forecast shows annual U.S. home price gains relaxing to 2.6% in January 2025. » Miami posted the highest year-over- year home price increase of the country's 10 highlighted metro areas in January, at 10.2%. San Diego saw the next-highest gain at 8.5%. » Among states, Rhode Island ranked first for annual appreciation in Jan- uary (up by 13.2%), followed by New Jersey (up by 11.6%) and Connecticut (up by 11%). No states recorded year- over-year home price losses. Many younger Americans are finding a way to become homeowners despite financial worries. Between 2020 and 2023, millennials are expected to make up more than half of all home purchase applications. The fact that baby boomers, who already have substantial savings, may pay for homes totally with cash adds to the difficulties faced by other buyers. "Home prices further increased in late 2023 despite high mortgage rates, which surged to the highest level since the beginning of the millennium," Hepp said. "But metro areas that have struggled with the impact of higher rates continue to see downward movement on home prices. Generally, pressures from higher mortgage rates tend to occur in markets where the higher cost of homeownership pushes against the affordability ceiling." In January 2024, the national average price of homes—including distressed sales—rose 5.8% year over year from Jan- uary 2023. In January 2024, house prices fell by -0.1% from December 2023 on a month-over-month basis. The CoreLogic HPI Forecast indicates that home prices will remain unchanged from January 2024 to February 2024 and increase by 2.6% on a year-over-year basis from January 2024 to January 2025. The next CoreLogic HPI press release, featuring February 2024 data, is scheduled to be issued on April 2, 2024. BUYER PREFERENCES SHIFT TOWARD SMALLER, MORE PERSONALIZED HOMES T he average size of a new home is still decreasing, falling from 2,479 square feet in 2022 to 2,411 square feet in 2023, according to a new report from the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB). This represents the smallest average size in 13 years after a slight rise in new home sizes in 2021. This trend is in line with homebuyer preferences for less square footage. Ac- cording to the latest What Home Buyers Really Want report by NAHB, buyers are looking for homes that are typically 2,070 square feet, as opposed to 2,260 square feet two decades ago. "It's related to two factors that are linked," said Rose Quint, Assistant VP of Survey Research for NAHB. "First, we've seen changes in home buyer preferences. Second, housing affordability has wors- ened in recent years." In response to this trend, builders are building smaller homes. Some 38% re- ported they did so in 2023 to boost home sales, and 26% said they intend to do so in 2024. Additionally, they are attempting to close the affordability gap in housing by lowering the cost of homes, offering incentives for sales, and introducing more reasonably priced finishes. While existing home prices con- tinued to rise to $394,600, a percentage point increase over the previous year, the median price of new homes fell to $427,400 in 2023, down 7 percentage points from 2022 and a dip not seen since 2009. Homebuyers are not only shifting their preferences on size; they're shifting their overall design preferences as well, placing higher value on personalization and authenticity. Home features that remain at the top of buyers' wish lists include four outdoor features, kitchen features, and features related to energy efficiency. Home Features on Buyers' Wish Lists: » Laundry room » Patio » Energy Star window » Exterior lighting » Ceiling fan » Garage storage » Front porch » Hardwood flooring » Full bath on the main level » Energy Star appliances » Walk-in pantry » Landscaping » Table space in the kitchen Security cameras, wired home security systems, programmable ther- mostats, video doorbells, multizone HVAC systems, and energy management systems are also among the technological elements that are growing in popularity. Home Features Growing in Popularity Over the Past Decade Include: » Quartz or engineered stone for kitchen countertops » Lighting control systems » Outdoor fireplaces » Outdoor kitchens » Built-in kitchen seating » Exposed beams "Our homeowners are looking to personalize their homes," said Donald Ruthroff, AIA, Founding Principal at Design Story Spaces. "They want to it feel like it was made just for them and be significantly different than their neigh- bors' homes." This can be seen in the house's