WKSU News: Cleveland housing ranked as most undervalued in the nation in new study

Thursday, June 11, 2015 Cleveland housing ranked as most undervalued in the nation in new study Homes in the Cleveland area are selling for 16% less than their worth. Story by BRIAN BULL

Dennis Keating says millennials are not buying homes as early, creating lesser demand.

Courtesy of Cleveland State

A national ranking of housing markets puts Cleveland on the "most undervalued" list along with Detroit. For Ohio Public Radio, WCPN’s Brian Bull reports:

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The findings show homes in the Cleveland-Elyria-Mentor area were selling at roughly 16 percent less than what they’re worth.

Dennis Keating is a Professor of Urban Affairs at Cleveland State University. He says there are roughly 16,000 vacant and abandoned homes in the area, bringing down the values of those neighborhoods.

“So with a glut of vacant housing on the market, that would tend to drive the price down…and nationally millennials, due to the job situation, also due to student debt and other factors, are not buying homes as earlier as they might have in the past. Therefore again, lesser demand," Keating says.

And as of this year, more than a fourth of Cleveland homes are underwater, meaning owners are paying lenders more on them than their actual assessed worth.