The number of renters who believe they’ll never afford a home has skyrocketed in the last year as rates rose and stock shortages lifted home prices out of their late-2023 spiral.
A recent Redfin survey found that close to 38% of renters believe they are unlikely to become homeowners, up from 27% at the same time last year.
Lack of affordability is the most cited reason for their pessimism, with almost half of respondents saying houses are simply too expensive.
Trouble saving for down payments (35%), inability to afford mortgage payments (33%) and high mortgage rates (32%) accounted for the rest. Just 14% said they don’t want to own a home.
The combination of price appreciation and near-7% rates has…
Mortgage brokers felt the burn in the last three months of 2023, with residential lending across the board stalling.
A new report from ATTOM found that 1.35 million residential mortgages were originated in Q4 2023. That’s a 13.8% drop from Q3, and the tenth decline in the last eleven quarters.
Residential lending activity overall was down 16.5% YOY, with purchases, refinances, and home equity loans all taking a hit.
Compared to the boom of Q1 2021, activity is down more than 67%.
“Multiple powerful forces continued to conspire against the mortgage industry during the fourth quarter, slicing back huge portions of their business,” said Rob Barber, CEO at ATTOM.
“There were signs during the peak buying season of 2022 that…
Katie Sweeney is stepping down as Chairman and CEO of the Association of Independent Mortgage Experts to helm the organization’s advocacy arm.
Sweeney is the co-founder and CEO of the Broker Action Coalition, AIME’s legislative advocacy group. She helped establish it in 2022 and told HousingWire it has “taken off like crazy,” requiring more time in Washington than she can devote while heading up another organization.
Because BAC had no separate leadership group, she and former AIME President of Advocacy Brendan McKay oversaw it while juggling multiple positions.
“I’ve spent the last 3.5 years building AIME into not only a major player in the mortgage industry but a well-represented community of professionals who now have a long-overdue voice,” Sweeney wrote…
The last two weeks of 2023 brought a slump in mortgage applications as buyers continue to grapple with affordability.
The Mortgage Bankers Association’s weekly survey shows the adjusted Market Composite Index – a measure of mortgage loan application volume – fell 9.4% from the two weeks prior. The data includes adjustments for the holidays.
Adjusted purchase applications dropped by 5%, while the unadjusted index fell 34% and was 12% lower YOY.
Americans appear to be losing interest in falling rates, which initially sparked some activity in the market. The 30-year fixed ended the year at 6.76%, ticking up very slightly from the week prior but still down more than a full point from its October peak.
MBA Vice President and…
Mortgage rates dipped below 7% for the first time since August after the Federal Reserve set the stage for rate cuts in the coming year.
Officials at Freddie Mac reported Thursday that the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 6.95%, down from the week prior’s 7.03%. A year ago at this time, the 30-year FRM averaged 6.31%.
It is now down nearly 90 bps in the last six weeks. This lowers the monthly mortgage payment for a $400,000 house to $2,118, down $183 from recent peaks.
The 15-year fixed rate, on the other hand, rose to 6.38%% from 6.29%. A year ago, it averaged 5.54%.
“Potential homebuyers received welcome news this week,” said Sam Khater, Freddie Mac’s Chief Economist.
“Given inflation continues…
POS provider Floify launched a one-stop lending platform for brokers, Floify Broker Edition.
The platform is built on the foundation of the Floift POS platform and features rule-based automation to promote efficiency. It also provides a borrower-friendly interface that boosts application pull-through.
Floify says brokers can use Broker Edition in place of a traditional loan origination system or add it to their preferred list of products.
“Floify Broker Edition is born out of a deep understanding of the unique challenges faced by mortgage brokers, which include juggling a burdensome administrative workload, regulatory compliance, and multiple technologies with minimal support,” said Floify President and General Manager Sofia Rossato.
“The platform is designed to make mortgage lending easier and more cost-effective while…
Borrowers struggling with rampant unaffordability are seeing some relief as mortgage rates cool, ending an upward swing.
Officials at Freddie Mac reported Thursday that the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 7.76%, down from 7.79%. A year ago at this time, the 30-year FRM averaged 6.95%.
The 15-year fixed rate remained unchanged at 7.03%. A year ago, it averaged 6.29%.
“The 30-year fixed-rate mortgage paused its multi-week climb but continues to hover under 8%,” said Sam Khater, Freddie Mac’s Chief Economist.
“The Federal Reserve again decided not to raise interest rates but have not ruled out a hike before year-end. Coupled with geopolitical uncertainty, this ambiguity around monetary policy will likely have an impact on the overall economic landscape and may continue…
New home sales sprang back to life in September, according to newly released data from the U.S. Census Bureau and the Department of Housing and Urban Development.
Sales rose by 12.3% from August to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 759,000. This is well above the rate of 680,000 units predicted by economists.
The median price for a new home was $418,800, while the average sales price was $503,900, both down.
But the increase may not hold over as the end of the year approaches, bringing with it historically lower-volume months.
“While the overall number of potential homebuyers is down, ‘patience’ seems to be the mantra for those still in the market, and lenders would do well to follow suit,…
Mortgage applications slipped again last week as treasury yields swelled to new highs.
The Mortgage Bankers Association’s weekly survey shows the adjusted Market Composite Index – a measure of mortgage loan application volume – decreased by 1%, a more moderate decline than the week prior’s 6.9% dip.
Adjusted purchase applications slipped by 2%, while the unadjusted index fell by 2% from the week before and was 22% lower YOY.
Another spike in rates drove the decline. The 30-year fixed mortgage rate rose to 7.90%, the highest level since 2000 and a 20 bps jump from last week. Rates have risen nearly 70 bps in the last seven weeks.
“Ten-year Treasury yields climbed higher last week, as global investors remained concerned…
Consumer sentiment is stuck in the pits thanks to soaring mortgage rates.
Fannie Mae’s Home Purchase Sentiment Index sank further in September, down by 2.4 points to 64.5. The full HPSI is up 3.7 points YOY, a decline from August.
Five of the index’s six components fell month-over-month. The home price expectations component increased, resulting in a net negative outlook.
Only 16% of respondents say it’s a good time to buy a home, down from 18% last month, while 84% say it’s a bad time to buy. This is new survey high.
The share of respondents who say it’s a good time to sell dropped as well, down to 63% from 66%.
Driving this pessimistic streak are mortgage rates, which…
