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Housing strains a microcosm of the US economy
The S&P Case Shiller 20 City house price index is now rising 14.9% year-on-year, the fastest rate of house price inflation since December 2005. Phoenix, San Diego and Seattle are leading the charge with 20%+ inflation, while Chicago is lagging at sub 10%. Across the major cities house prices nationally are now 24% above the peak of the mid-2000s housing bubble. Demand for housing has been phenomenally strong since soon after the pandemic struck as Federal Reserve interest rates cuts and quantitative easing drove down borrowing costs right across the US economy. The 30Y fixed mortgage rate dropped from 3.82% in late ... (full story)