Recent Posts by Odeta Kushi

Dispelling the Myth of the 20 Percent Down Payment
By
Odeta Kushi on August 6, 2019
Since hitting a low point of 63 percent in 2016, the homeownership rate has rebounded, largely driven by millennial households purchasing their first homes. Many surveys, like one by Bank of the West, indicate that millennials are no different from previous generations – they view homeownership as a main tenet of the American Dream.
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How Has the Housing Market Changed Since the End of the Great Recession?
By
Odeta Kushi on July 3, 2019
June marked the 10-year anniversary of the end of the Great Recession. Amid Independence Day celebrations, assessing how the American dream of homeownership has fared since the recession can provide helpful context for the health of today’s housing market. We have assembled a set of housing metrics and compared their values today with what those ...
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Homeownership Progress Index Real House Price Index Affordability Homeownership
Top 10 Cities with the Largest Supply of Affordable Homes for First-Time Home Buyers
By
Odeta Kushi on June 13, 2019
Faced with often misleading affordability metrics and seemingly challenging housing market dynamics, many renters may underestimate their house-buying power and the supply of homes in their market that they can afford. Potential first-time home buyers can benefit from a more targeted examination of affordability, which begins by accurately ...
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How Have the 2017 Tax Law Changes Impacted Real Estate Prices?
By
Odeta Kushi on May 13, 2019
Enacted in 2017, the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act reduced tax breaks for homeowners. At the time, many in the real estate industry expected the changes to negatively impact the housing market, particularly in high-priced neighborhoods. The industry concern primarily focused on two specific changes included in the bill: the mortgage interest deduction was ...
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How Will Low Mortgage Rates Impact Housing Affordability This Spring?
By
Odeta Kushi on April 17, 2019
Last year, the over-arching trend in the housing market was the impact of rising rates on affordability. Mortgage rates had been increasing since 2017 and that trend continued in 2018, especially in the second half of the year. Rates were rising largely due to a strengthening economy – the Fed raises rates in a strong economy to encourage ...
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How Homebodies Hold Down Home Sales
By
Odeta Kushi on March 19, 2019
First American’s most recent Potential Home Sales model for January 2019 found a 5.7 percent decline in the market potential for existing home sales, compared to the previous year. Increasing tenure length (the length of time a homeowner stays in their home before moving) was the most prominent factor leading to this decline.
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