New home construction is an important part of balancing the housing market. When inventory is low and prices are rising, building more new homes can help level the imbalance and provide better affordability conditions for buyers of all types of homes. But builders don't build more homes unless there are interested buyers. That's why keeping an eye on new home sales can help buyers get a feel for what's happening in the overall market. If new home sales are rising, builders are more likely to build more homes, which … [Read more...]

Buying a house isn't a short-term living arrangement. Typically, if you're buying, you're planning to stay a while. But how long should home buyers expect to live in the house they purchase? Well, conventional wisdom says you should expect to live in the house you buy for at least five years. Recently, though, Americans have been staying in their homes longer before selling and moving somewhere new. In fact, between 2019 and 2021, the typical homeownership tenure was cited as being somewhere between eight and 13 … [Read more...]

According to the Mortgage Bankers Association's Weekly Applications Survey, average mortgage rates fell last week from one week earlier. Rates were down for 30-year fixed-rate loans with both conforming and jumbo balances, loans backed by the Federal Housing Administration, and 15-year fixed-rate loans. Joel Kan, MBA's vice president and deputy chief economist, says rates have been trending downward lately. “Mortgage rates declined for the third straight week, which is good news for potential home buyers looking … [Read more...]

Saving enough money for a down payment can be a hurdle for some home buyers, especially first-time buyers. After all, unlike move-up buyers who can use the proceeds of their previous home's sale, first-time buyers have to come up with a down payment largely through savings. But saving money's not always easy. In fact, among recently surveyed millennial home buyers, 41 percent said saving for a down payment was the biggest barrier to buying a home – only mortgage rates and home prices ranked higher. The good news, … [Read more...]

Each month, Fannie Mae's Economic and Strategic Research Group releases an outlook detailing what it thinks is ahead for the economy and housing market. The forecast covers the group's expectations for economic growth, home sales, prices, mortgage rates, and other economic factors. According to the most recent release, the group sees a rebound ahead for the housing market but can't say for sure when it'll begin. That's largely due to the fact that where mortgage rates go from here is dependent on the Federal … [Read more...]

Sales of previously owned homes slipped 1.5 percent in December, according to newly released numbers from the National Association of Realtors. The decline is the 11th consecutive monthly decrease and puts sales 34 percent lower than where they were at the same time one year earlier. But while home sales have obviously suffered during a period of rising mortgage rates and high home prices, Lawrence Yun, NAR's chief economist, expects things will pick up soon. “December was another difficult month for buyers, who … [Read more...]

According to the Mortgage Bankers Association's Weekly Applications Survey, average mortgage rates fell last week. In fact, rates were down from the week before across all loan categories, including 30-year fixed-rate loans with both conforming and jumbo balances, loans backed by the Federal Housing Administration, 15-year fixed-rate loans, and 5/1 ARMs. Mike Fratantoni, MBA's SVP and chief economist, says rates are now at their lowest level since last September. “Mortgage rates are now at their lowest level since … [Read more...]

A lot changed when the COVID-19 pandemic began in early 2020. But while some of those changes – like remote work or the rise of grocery delivery services – made perfect sense, others weren't as clear. Take the housing market, for example. Home buying demand skyrocketed during the pandemic. But why? What about a global pandemic would lead Americans to become more interested in buying a home? The initial explanation offered was that the pandemic caused us to spend more time at home, which resulted in people wanting … [Read more...]

Lending standards aren't fixed. That means, depending on market conditions, getting approved for a mortgage can be easier at times and more difficult at others. Because of this, the Mortgage Bankers Association tracks mortgage credit availability each month. Any increase in its Mortgage Credit Availability Index indicates that standards are loosening and potential borrowers will have an easier time obtaining a mortgage. A decline means the opposite and indicates lenders are tightening standards. In December, the … [Read more...]

When the housing market was at its peak, home sellers had the advantage. It wasn't uncommon for a homeowner with an attractive listing to receive multiple offers from interested buyers. Put simply, it was a sellers' market. These days, things have obviously changed. Higher mortgage rates and more challenging affordability conditions mean home sellers have to work a little harder to entice potential buyers. It's leading more of them to offer buyers concessions. But what are concessions? Well, they can be a lot of … [Read more...]