Worried that this spring's rising home prices are creating another housing market bubble? Top real estate analyst Mark Fleming of CoreLogic says his research pops that theory.

To predict future housing prices, CoreLogic looked at the relationship between income and home prices. In the long run, home prices can't rise much faster than the income families have to spend, Fleming explains.

CoreLogic compared income and home prices in 50 local markets instead of the nation as a whole because income levels vary dramatically across markets. Anyone who's compared a million-dollar home in San Francisco to one in Columbus, Ohio knows your money goes a lot further in Columbus.


Before the recession, home prices got way ahead of income. Then during the recession there was a "significant overcorrection" where income rose much faster than home prices, Fleming said.

As the economy improves and incomes rise, buyers will have more money to spend on housing. Meanwhile, people can afford to spend more on homes than what they're spending.

That gap tells us there's no need to fear a bubble for at least a few years to come, if at all, Fleming says.