East Meyer 7, a neighborhood in Kansas City, Missouri, has experienced significant changes in its housing market over the past decade. This area has seen a remarkable increase in average home prices, rising from $28,659 in 2015 to $118,242 in 2022, a 313% increase in just seven years. Simultaneously, homeownership rates have declined from 63% in 2015 to 46% in 2022, suggesting that rising home prices may have made purchasing a home less accessible for many residents. Federal interest rates have played a crucial role in shaping these trends. From 2010 to 2016, interest rates remained historically low, between 0.1% and 0.4%, coinciding with stable homeownership rates of 59% to 63% in East Meyer 7. However, as interest rates began to rise from 2017 onwards, reaching 1.68% in 2022, homeownership rates declined to 46%. This trend aligns with the economic principle that higher interest rates can make mortgages less affordable and discourage homeownership.

The renter population in East Meyer 7 has grown correspondingly, increasing from 37% in 2015 to 54% in 2022. Average rent prices have shown significant volatility during this period, starting at $523 in 2015, dropping to $133 in 2018, then surging to $1,045 in 2019, before settling at $935 in 2022. This fluctuation in rent prices, coupled with the increasing renter population, suggests a complex interplay of factors affecting the rental market, including changes in housing supply, demand, and overall neighborhood desirability.