First American Chief Economist Mark Fleming was interviewed on both CNBC and Yahoo! Finance earlier this week and discussed the outlook for mortgage rates in 2019, the impact of student debt on millennial first-time home buyers and how baby boomers aging in place is limiting housing supply.
On Today's Mortgage Rates:
“There are lots of things that drive the mortgage rate that are really out of the control of the mortgage and housing market in general, and that’s what we’re experiencing with the decline to a 4.5 percent rate today.”
On millennial homeownership rates:
“The broader, long-term story is a very solid demographic tailwind for the housing market over the coming years. While the homeownership rate did decline a couple of years ago, from 69 to 63 percent reaching a 50-year low for the homeownership rate, over the last year, its moved up. And you know why its moved up? Millennial first-time home buyers.”
