We’re being facetious, of course, but starter hoes – generally smaller, two-bedroom units – closed out 2022 with 15 percent year-over-year price increases.

Meanwhile, luxury homes – here defined as the 10 percent most expensive homes in any given market – saw a modest 2.5 percent increase at the close of 2022.

What gives?Analysts agree that luxury home purchases are more discretionary – and with the stock market down – many feel that it is simply not a good time to buy.

Starter homes are the opposite – buying fulfills a need, not a whim – and the competition is much more fierce, thus driving up prices

A recent article in the New York Times highlights an important facet of the nationwide housing crisis: starter homes are no longer being built. Homes that are affordable for young families just starting out or recent immigrants trying to get a foothold in their new country.

The reasons are many: land and building materials are much more expensive, rules and regulations are much stricter (and the fees higher).

Analysts say that one solution may be to go back to what starter homes looked like 100 years ago: duplexes and rowhouses.