For business owners looking to expand or start anew, knowing the housing prices and housing market trend of an area will prove invaluable. Local and US housing statistics can illustrate how much new construction has taken place from year to year and enable you to analyze the housing market of an area compared to the rest of the nation.

National home sales statistics can give you insight into:

1. The economic viability of the area, as reflected in property prices;

2. The growth potential of the area, as shown in new home sales statistics;

3. The nation's economy.

Action Steps
The best contacts and resources to help you get it done

Use reports available through companies to analyze housing market statistics

Since housing statistics are so vital to the business economy, several companies collect and provide national home sales statistics. You can find statistics broken down as recently as a month ago and can research areas of interest in the country.

I recommend: Realtor.org releases national property sales statistics each month, tracking the growth or decline of the market from the previous month and the previous year. The National Homebuilders Association keeps track of new home sale statistics. For a fee, companies like Real Capital Analytics will let you use their powerful search engines to break down the housing statistics for the area in which you are most interested.

Use government resources to analyze US housing market statistics

The federal government keeps close tabs on US housing statistics and has in-depth reports that are free to public. There are several agencies that can give you an insight into the market.

I recommend: The U.S. Census releases housing sales statistics each quarter and breaks them down into regions in the US. Construction employment stats from the Bureau of Labor Statistics can give you a good idea of the health of the construction market. When employment is good, so too is the rest of the housing market. If you are looking for specific information about a certain state, try contacting the Housing and Urban Development office in the state of interest.

Find foreclosure data to give you insight into the housing market trend

The number of foreclosures in an area almost always directly impacts the area's housing prices. If a market is saturated with foreclosures, typically the amount of new construction in that area falls and so, too, do the prices. Foreclosure data will give you a good insight into the area's potential.

I recommend: The Mortgage Bankers Association is a great place to find information on foreclosure rates and mortgage delinquencies. RealtyTrac keeps close tabs on national foreclosure rates and releases its information through press releases.

Tips & Tactics

Helpful advice for making the most of this Guide

• •  Finding housing sales statistics should just be the starting point of your research into a potential market. Talk to the area's chamber of commerce to get more statistics and information that you will need.
• •  Check back regularly to research an area's housing statistics. News, such as a new employer in the area, can change the statistics quickly.