Springfield makes debut on improving home markets list

SBJ Staff

Posted online March 21, 2012 | 10:33 am

The Springfield metropolitan statistical area debuted last week on the National Association of Home Builders/First American Improving Markets Index, which tallies housing markets showing measurable improvement.

The Springfield MSA - which comprises Greene, Christian, Webster, Dallas and Polk counties - is among 99 MSAs nationwide to make the March 15 list, including the Joplin, Kansas City, Jefferson City and Columbia MSAs.

The index is measured based on employment growth data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, housing price appreciation from Freddie Mac and single-family housing permit growth from the U.S. Census Bureau. To be listed, an MSA must show improvement from their respective lows in all three areas for at least six consecutive months.

In the Springfield MSA, the employment low was Sept. 30, 2009; the housing price low occurred Jan. 31, 2011; and the building permit low came March 31, 2009. Since the low points, the indicators have grown 2.2 percent, 0.2 percent and 2 percent, respectively.

“Our region has several advantages compared to most other markets in the country,” Matt Morrow, CEO of the Home Builders Association of Greater Springfield, said in a news release. “We have a diverse jobs economy, with an unemployment rate well below average. People continue to move here, and a growing population ultimately will always need housing."

Springfield Business Journal's Jan. 23 story, "Room to Improve," noted the Springfield MSA was absent from the First American Improving Markets Index, and some industry representatives said the reason likely was because Springfield wasn't hit as hard by the recession.

"New home inventory levels, while once slightly overbuilt, are now at or below normal levels. It all adds up to this. Just as we entered the downturn later than most, we are likely to emerge sooner. And while we certainly felt our share of pain, we never had to sink as deeply as many other markets have," Morrow said in the release.[[In-content Ad]]