Economist Robert Shiller, a Yale
University professor, told CNBC on Tuesday that even though the housing
market is showing some signs of slowing, the recovery still remains
strong.
“There is a certain, substantial amount of momentum in the housing
market — much more so than the stock market,” he says. “I think this
boom we saw in the last year and a half in home prices has something to
do with quantitative easing and the record-low mortgage rates.”
But there are signs of easing: Mortgage rates have been rising, while
building permits and housing starts are softening. Still, Shiller says
he doesn’t see those factors as derailing the housing recovery. In fact,
Shiller, who co-founded the Case-Shiller Home Price Index, says the
futures market is predicting 25 percent higher home prices in 2018.
“That seems like a possibility,” he told CNBC.
Source: “More Momentum in Housing Than Stocks, Shiller Says,” CNBC (April 15, 2014)