Both rent and mortgage payment price growth reached record highs in December, according to a new report from Redfin. Rents jumped to $1,877, 14.1% year-over-year (YOY) and the largest annual jump since at least February 2019, the earliest month in Redfin’s data. The national monthly mortgage payment rose 21.6% YOY, also the largest increase in Redfin’s data history. “The growth in mortgage payments has been driven by both climbing prices and climbing mortgage rates,” said Redfin Chief Economist Daryl Fairweather. “And those rising mortgage costs push more potential homebuyers into renting instead, which pushes up demand and prices for rentals. Mortgage rate increases are accelerating, which will cause both mortgage payments and rent to grow throughout 2022.” The 30-year fixed-rate…
Mortgage rates continue to rise, up to an average of 3.56% from 3.45%, Freddie Mac reported Thursday. Freddie’s Primary Mortgage Market Survey (PMMS) found that the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage (FRM) averaged 3.56%. A year ago at this time, the 30-year FRM averaged 2.77%. “Mortgage rates moved up again as the 10-year U.S. Treasury yield rose and financial markets adjusted to anticipated changes in monetary policy that will combat inflation,” said Sam Khater, Freddie Mac’s Chief Economist. “As a result of higher mortgage rates, purchase demand has modestly waned in advance of the spring homebuying season. However, supply remains near historically tight levels and home prices remain high, keeping the market competitive.” Inventory reached a record low in December, down 19.5%…
Good Morning! Today is Tuesday, November 23. The Justice Department will pay $130 million to the survivors and families of victims of the Parkland, FL shooting, settling a lawsuit that alleged the FBI failed to investigate tips in advance of the tragedy. A defense attorney in the Ahmaud Arbery case is under scrutiny after making comments in court about the toes of the deceased. An Airbus A340 plane has landed on Antarctica for the first time. And in mortgage and housing news… Powell Renominated: President Biden renominated Jerome Powell to chair the Fed. Here’s what industry analysts think about the move. Black Knight First Look: The national delinquency rate continued to improve at a slow but steady pace last month, with especially impactful declines for loans…
House prices rose 1% in August and are now 18.5% higher than a year ago, according to the Federal Housing Finance Agency’s House Price Index (FHFA HPI). “Annual house price gains remained extremely high in August but the pace of month-over-month gains continues to decelerate,” said Dr. Lynn Fisher, FHFA’s Deputy Director of the Division of Research and Statistics. “This does not mean house prices are at risk of declining—far from it, they continue to climb at a double-digit pace in all regions—but it does suggest we may have seen the peak in annual gains for the time being.” At the same time, First American released its Real House Price Index (RHPI), which showed similar results: Real house prices rose…
Good Morning! Today is Monday, Aug. 30. Hurricane Ida made landfall in Lousiana yesterday, leaving more than a million people without power. The U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan continues, despite multiple reports of American citizens being left behind. The EU seeks to block non-essential travel from the U.S. Millennial professionals are using their savings to take a break from working and explore new career paths. And in mortgage and housing news… Buying Power: Home buyers in June 2021 had 129% more house-buying power than in 2006, according to the June 2021 First American Real House Price Index. Experts Say: A Reuters poll of experts predicts that housing affordability is set to remain stretched or worsen in the next 2-3 years. Ida Makes…
Homebuyers in June 2021 had 129 percent more house-buying power than in 2006, according to the June 2021 First American Real House Price Index (RHPI), released today. “House-buying power, how much one can buy based on changes in income and interest rates, increased by 6.8 percent in June compared with a year ago, propelled by lower mortgage rates and higher household income,” said Mark Fleming, chief economist at First American Financial Corporation, which releases the RHPI. First American is a leading global provider of title insurance, settlement services, and risk solutions for real estate transactions. “The affordability gain from increased house-buying power, however, was offset by the third component of the RHPI, nominal house price appreciation, which reached a record…
