The National Association of Realtors recently announced the latest US real estate figures and the numbers are encouraging for anyone considering selling their home.

Evidently, home price growth accelerated in much of the country during the fourth quarter of 2014.

This is a fantastic development for anyone hoping to get a good price on their home for sale. Continue reading to learn more.

What You Should Know About US Home Sales

Here is an overview of the highlights of the most recent real estate market report:

• The median price of an existing single-family home increased year-over-year in 86 percent of 175 metropolitan areas.
• 24 areas had price gains of 10 percent or more.
• That figure is up from 16 regions during the third quarter.
• Meanwhile, prices declined in 24 areas.
• Experts credit the home price acceleration at least in part to low mortgage rates and improving employment conditions.
• Still, home price gains are reducing affordability in areas across the country, which had 25 percent growth on average over the last three years.
• At the end of the fourth quarter, there were 1.85 million previously-owned homes listed for sale, down from 2.01 million a year earlier.
• The number of markets that saw year-over-year price gains in the fourth quarter has increased.
• The median price for an existing single-family home in the three months through December was $208,700, which is up 6 percent from the fourth quarter of 2013.

A Different Effect Seen in Canada

As US home prices have increased, a lot of Canadian cities are seeing declines in home prices.

According to the market data:

• Home prices have started trending downward in several major Canadian cities, including Montreal, Winnipeg, Calgary and Hamilton, Ont.
• Still, at least two major cities showed gains. On an annual basis, home prices were up 7.4 percent in Toronto and up 5.1 percent in Vancouver.

When It Comes to Real Estate, Knowledge is Power

We take pride in being able to provide you with the most up-to-date market information so that you can make informed decisions as home buyers and sellers.

Check back soon for even more updates on the state of the national housing market and how that may impact you as a buyer or seller.

Regardless of whether you’re navigating the new home sales market or the new construction market, you’ve likely heard some great news over the last few weeks.

That’s because both sectors of the national housing market have made gains recently, according to media reports.

If you’re planning on entering the market anytime soon as a buyer or seller, we recommend you continue reading to learn more about the latest trends on the housing market.

A Closer Look at US Single-Family Housing Starts

According to a recent Reuters article, groundbreaking for U.S. single-family homes increased to its highest level in more than 6 years in December.

Experts say that this, coupled with a huge jump in permits, hints at a recovering housing market.

Here’s what national data revealed about single-family housing starts:

• Single-family housing starts jumped 7.2 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual pace of 728,000-units.
• That figure is the highest level it’s been since March 2008.
• The jump in housing starts offset a 0.8 percent fall in groundbreaking for the multi-family homes segment.
• These two factors combined lifted overall housing starts 4.4 percent to a 1.09 million-unit rate last month.
• It should be noted that Wall Street had forecast starts rising to a 1.04 million-unit pace.
• For all of 2014, groundbreaking increased 8.8 percent to 1.01 million units, the highest since 2007.
• Single-family housing starts in 2014 were also the highest in seven years.
• Single-family permits increased 4.5 percent to their highest level since January 2008.

Equally Positive Signs Seen on for New Home Sales

Meanwhile, sales of new homes also showed signs of growth in recent months.

Here’s what Reuters recently reported about this subsection of the market:

• Sales increased 11.6 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 481,000 units.
• New home sales, which make up roughly 8 percent of the housing market, saw a total of 435,000 homes sold compared with 429,000 in 2013.

We’ll Help You Become an Informed Buyer or Seller

We truly believe that the more informed buyers and sellers are about the local housing market, the more likely they are to enjoy a successful outcome on the market.

That’s why we bring you pertinent information about the housing market every month.

Check back here soon for even more information about the current state of the housing market and how it may affect you.