Hammond, LA Federal Housing Finance Agency Home Price Index (FHFA HPI)

The Hammond, LA, Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) House Price Index (HPI) is a weighted, repeat-sales index that measures average price changes in repeat sales or refinancings on the same properties. The index covers single-family homes and condominiums. The HPI value for a particular geographic area is the weighted sum of the indices for all counties in that area.

As of December 2020, the HPI for Hammond, LA was 195.6, up from 190.3 in November 2020 and up from 171.8 in December 2019. This represents a year-over-year increase of 13 percent and a month-over-month increase of 2 percent.

Home equity is the portion of a home's value that is owned by the homeowner rather than by the lender. Home prices are an important factor in determining home equity because they affect how much of the home's value is financed through a mortgage. When home prices rise, home equity increases; when home prices fall, home equity decreases.

The relationship between house prices and home equity can be seen clearly in Hammond, LA where both have been rising steadily over the past year. As of December 2020, the median sale price of homes in Hammond was $180,000, up from $170,000 in December 2019 – an increase of 6 percent. At the same time, the average loan amount for new mortgages originated in Hammond increased from $149,000 to $161,000 – an increase of 8 percent. This means that homeowners in Hammond saw their equity increase by an average of 14 percent over the course of 2020 as their homes gained value faster than their mortgage balances grew.

Looking forward to 2021, it seems likely that both house prices and home equity will continue to rise across Hammond as buyers compete for limited inventory and take advantage of historically low interest rates