Median home values rose sharply between 2000 and 2005, with some of the highest increases rising more than 100 percent, according to new Census Bureau data released today. Along with rising values, monthly ownership costs have also increased nationwide, with the sharpest increases occurring in Detroit, Chicago and San Francisco.
The real median home value in San Diego jumped from $249,000 to $567,000 between 2000 and 2005, the largest increase in the nation among big cities. Across the country, real median home values soared 32 percent, according to the American Community Survey data, collected in 2005.
The survey is a first look at key housing information for many communities since Census 2000, when many housing markets started to boom with activity. Many markets across the country began to lose steam in 2005, with slowing home sales.
“Just about anyone who owns a home or has been in the market for one in the past few years knows first-hand how home values jumped from 2000 to 2005,” said Census Bureau Director Louis Kincannon.
Median Housing Value
Among the nation’s largest cities, some of the highest percent increases in real median home values between 2000 and 2005 were found in San Diego (127.2 percent), Los Angeles (110.2 percent) and New York (79.1 percent).
In the smaller cities, with 65,000 population or more, some of the highest percentage increases in real median home values were found in Boynton Beach, Fla. (120.3 percent); Folsom, Calif. (99.5 percent); and Redondo Beach, Calif. (91.7 percent). Among the smallest cities covered in the 2005 data release with populations of 65,000 or more, Newport Beach and Santa Barbara, Calif., were the only two cities with a median home value of a million dollars or more.
Owner-Occupied
More than two-thirds of the nation’s total occupied housing units were owner-occupied in 2005, an increase of 4.5 million over the Census 2000 number (69.8 million). Among the 15 largest cities, Jacksonville, Fla., had one of the highest percentages of owner-occupied housing units at 64.2 percent. San Jose, Calif., and Indianapolis also had high percentages of owner-occupied housing units. Of the 15 smaller cities, Missouri City, Texas (88.6 percent); Boynton Beach, Fla. (72.9 percent); and Folsom, Calif. (71.3 percent), had some of the highest percentage of owner-occupied housing units. The estimates for Boynton Beach and Folsom are not statistically different from each other.
Median Selected Monthly Ownership Costs
Real median selected monthly owner costs for owners with mortgages have increased 5 percent nationally between 2000 and 2005. Though not statistically different from each other, some of the highest increases among the largest cities in real median monthly owner costs were found in Detroit (24.1 percent), Chicago (21.7 percent) and San Francisco (19.6 percent).
Decreases of about 10 percent in real median home-ownership costs were found in some of the smaller cities such as Bryan, Texas, and Greenville, N.C.
Median Gross Rent
Additionally, the real median cost of renting a home increased nationally by 6.7 percent from 2000 to 2005. Some of the highest real median rent percentage increases among the large cities were found in San Diego (27.2 percent), Detroit (22.5 percent), and Los Angeles (15.9 percent). Among the smallest cities, Redondo Beach, Calif. (21.7 percent), also had increases in real median rent. Real median rent actually decreased in some of the largest cities including San Jose, Calif. (-9.4 percent) and Dallas (-3 percent).
As part of the Census Bureau’s reengineered 2010 Census, the data collected by the ACS helps federal officials determine where to distribute more than $200 billion back to state and local governments each year, and responses to the survey are strictly confidential and protected by law.
The 2005 ACS estimates are based on an annual, nationwide household sample of about 250,000 addresses per month, or 2.5 percent of the population a year. Geographic areas for which data are available are based on total populations of 65,000 or more.
