New numbers from the U.S. Census Bureau and the Department of Housing and Urban Development show new home sales up 1 percent in July. The modest gain follows an unexpected drop in June, when sales fell 6.6 percent from the month before. But while rebounding sales are an encouraging sign for the housing market, they come at a time when affordability challenges are making it more difficult for buyers. For example, the median sales price of new homes sold in July was $390,500. The average sales price was $446,000. … [Read more...]

If you're a prospective home buyer, the latest existing-home sales data from the National Association of Realtors is a mixed bag. On the one hand, the number of homes for sale was up 7.3 percent in July from the month before. That's a much needed improvement, since the lack of homes for sale has been driving home prices higher and fueling competition among buyers. But while inventory has improved, it's still much lower than normal. And, in July, 89 percent of homes sold were on the market for less than a month. … [Read more...]

New technology always take a while before it catches on. People need to warm up to the idea and make sure it can deliver as promised. That's certainly true of 3D printed homes. At this point, most of us have heard about them but few of us have seen or stepped inside one. According to a new survey from the National Association of Realtors, however, that doesn't mean home buyers aren't curious. In fact, results show 66 percent of respondents said they'd consider buying a 3D printed home, with 75 percent of … [Read more...]

Each month, Fannie Mae's Economic and Strategic Research Group releases a forecast detailing their expectations for the housing market and overall economy. In August, their outlook for single-family home sales was revised downward due to ongoing inventory and supply-chain issues. But while they now expect fewer homes to sell than they previously did, they still expect sales to improve from last year. In fact, they expect a 3.1 percent improvement from 2020. Mark Palim, Fannie Mae's vice president and deputy chief … [Read more...]

According to the Mortgage Bankers Association's Weekly Applications Survey, average mortgage rates increased last week from one week earlier. Rates were up across all loan categories, including 30-year fixed-rate loans with both conforming and jumbo balances, loans backed by the Federal Housing Administration, and 15-year fixed-rate loans. The increases coincided with falling demand for mortgage loan applications. The refinance index was down 4 percent week-over-week and the purchase index was down 1 percent. Joel … [Read more...]

Sales of vacation homes started to surge soon after the pandemic began. With more Americans able to work remotely, demand for second homes skyrocketed. It makes sense. After all, a vacation home is only worth the expense if you're able to use it regularly. There's no need for the added financial burden if you're only able to be there one weekend a year. So, naturally, the flexibility of remote work led more of us to look for a getaway somewhere beautiful. So many of us, in fact, that second-home sales increased … [Read more...]

In a competitive market, a good home is likely to draw multiple offers. That means, the home's seller gets to choose the best one. And more often than not, that means choosing the one that offers the most money. For home sellers, that's an ideal situation. For buyers, though, it's stressful. It means figuring out how much more you're willing to pay for a house you really want. It also means realizing you might lose it to someone willing to pay more. Unfortunately, in today's market, bidding wars are common. In … [Read more...]

When a homeowner lists their home for sale and can't find an interested buyer, the most obvious thing for them to do is lower their price. After all, their home might garner more attention if it were more affordable. Of course, in this market, home sellers haven't had to worry too much about that. These days, sellers are more likely to get more than they asked for than they are to have to drop their price. And that's still true. But while the market is definitely still hot, there are signs that it may be beginning … [Read more...]

For most of us, buying a house means applying for a loan. After all, homes are expensive, so you're probably going to need to finance your purchase. But the standards used to determine the terms of that loan, or whether or not you're approved to borrow at all, aren't fixed. There are times when your financial situation needs to be in better shape than others in order to qualify for a loan. That's why the Mortgage Bankers Association takes a monthly measure of mortgage credit availability. When lending standards … [Read more...]

According to the Mortgage Bankers Association's Weekly Applications Survey, demand for mortgage applications rose 2.8 percent last week from one week earlier. The improvement included a 3 percent increase in refinance activity and a 2 percent gain in the number of buyers looking for loans to buy homes. Joel Kan, MBA's vice president of economic and industry forecasting, says there are signs that first-time buyers are having more luck in the market. “The higher level of purchase activity last week was driven by more … [Read more...]