Affordability Nationally Improves 4.4 Percent Annually as Supply Accumulates in Many Markets
By
Mark Fleming on June 27, 2025
Key Points: Annual affordability improved in 43 of the top 50 U.S. markets in April. 11 markets posted both above-average supply and above-average affordability improvement. Miami leads in supply (7.2 months), while Hartford remains the tightest market (1.7 months). Affordability nationally improved 4.4 percent annually in April, as mortgage rates ...
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Incentives, Inventory, and the Tale of Two Housing Markets
By
Odeta Kushi on June 20, 2025
Key Points: The existing-home share of total sales fell to the lowest level since 2005. The price of the median new home is lower than the price of a median existing home. While the new-home market has outperformed the existing-home market, headwinds may slow the momentum. Existing-home sales transactions continue to languish, around the 4 million ...
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Under Pressure: Rising Homeownership Costs Squeeze Housing Affordability
By
Sam Williamson on June 12, 2025
Key Points: The average monthly cost of owning a home in the U.S. soared to over $1,700 in 2023—a 17 percent increase from 2020—driven by across-the-board cost increases in mortgages, utilities, property taxes, and insurance. While mortgage holders face higher overall expenses, outright owners are seeing their housing budgets stretched more ...
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Affordability Improves Nationally Amid Divergent Regional House Price Trends
By
Mark Fleming on May 28, 2025
Key Points: Affordability improved in March, aided by falling mortgage rates, slower house price growth, and rising household income. National house price growth remains modestly positive, but prices declined in 13 of the top 50 markets year over year, while other markets posted strong gains. Market divergence in house price trends is below ...
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Peak Homebody Era is Pummeling the Housing Market
By
Odeta Kushi on May 23, 2025
Key Points: There is a strong relationship between the median length of time that people stay in their home, known as tenure, and sales activity. Historically, the median tenure length in the U.S. has been six years, but today it’s reached a historic high of nearly nine years. The drivers behind the rise in tenure length are multi-faceted but ...
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Southern Discomfort: Weather and Economic Headwinds Drive Home Insurance Premiums Through the Roof
By
Sam Williamson on May 7, 2025
Key Points: Homeowners insurance premiums in the U.S. increased by 21 percent between 2021 and 2023, driven by severe weather-related events, rising construction costs, and higher claim payouts. The South, particularly coastal cities, faced the steepest hikes, with eight of the 10 metros with the fastest-growing premiums located in the region. ...
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