Homeownership Declines Again

In the fourth quarter, the national homeownership rate fell to 66.0 percent, 0.5 percentage points lower than the fourth quarter 2010 rate (66.5 percent) and 0.3 percentage points lower than the rate last quarter (66.3 percent).

National vacancy rates were 9.4 percent for rental housing and 2.3 percent for homeowner housing, the Department of Commerce’s Census Bureau announced today. The rental vacancy rate of 9.4 percent was approximately the same as the fourth quarter 2010 rate and 0.4 percentage points lower than last quarter. The homeowner vacancy rate of 2.3 percent was 0.4 percentage points lower than the fourth quarter 2010 rate and 0.1 percentage point lower than the rate last quarter.

The homeowner vacancy rate in principal cities (2.5 percent) was higher than in the suburbs (2.1 percent), but not statistically different from the rate outside MSA’s (2.5 percent). The homeowner vacancy rates in the suburbs and outside MSA’s were not statistically different from each other. The homeowner vacancy rate in principal cities was lower than a year ago, while the rates in the suburbs and outside MSA’s were not statistically different from their corresponding fourth quarter 2010 rates.

Among regions, the rental vacancy rate was highest in the South (12.0 percent) and lowest in the West (6.6 percent). The rental vacancy rate in the West was lower than in the fourth quarter 2010, while the rates in the Northeast, Midwest, and South were statistically unchanged.

For the fourth quarter 2011, the homeowner vacancy rates were higher in the Midwest (2.5 percent) and South (2.4 percent), but these rates were not statistically different from each other. The rates were lower in the Northeast (2.0 percent) and West (2.1 percent), but these rates were not statistically different from each other. The homeowner vacancy rates in the South and West were lower than a year ago, while the rates in the Northeast and Midwest were not statistically different from the fourth quarter 2010 rates.