Real Estate

A new study from RentCafe revealed renting alone has become an increasingly popular trend, with baby boomers making up the largest population of renters living alone in the U.S. followed by millennials, as the number of solo renters reached a record high of 17.7 million in 2020 and continues to grow.

“In recent years, housing inventory constraints and home-price appreciation have resulted in rising average loan balances for single-family homeownership. Yet, financing lower balance loans is an essential way for the mortgage industry to facilitate access to affordable, lower-valued homes,” said MBA’s VP of Industry Analysis Marina Walsh, CMB.

"After essentially flattening earlier this year, year-over-year home price growth has been reaccelerating for the last few months," said Andy Walden, ICE VP of Enterprise Research.

Record-high mortgage payments continue to motivate sellers to lower asking prices to attract more buyers, as a new Redfin report revealed the average homebuyer’s monthly housing payment is up nearly 9% year-over-year, reaching a new all-time high.

A new survey from LendingTree revealed that in addition to rising mortgage rates and housing costs, approximately 39.79% of respondents cited rent increases as the primary reason why they felt pressured to move, followed by landlords not making repairs and living in unsafe neighborhoods.

"The dynamics influencing the U.S. housing market appear to continuously work against everyday Americans, potentially to the point where they could start to have a significant impact on home prices," said Rob Barber, CEO for ATTOM.

NAR reports that pending home sales dropped in all four U.S. regions month-over-month and compared to one year ago, as mortgage rates above 7% continue to impact homebuying.

As part of the Biden Administration’s strategy to counter antisemitism, HUD’s Office of Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity has joined seven other federal agencies to issue fact sheets on Title VI protections.

Mortgage application payments increased slightly in August to $2,170, according to MBA's Purchase Applications Payment Index, while overall homebuyer affordability declined, as homebuyers’ budgets continue to be impacted by high home prices and mortgage rates above 7%.

According to a new Redfin survey, discrimination drove roughly 1 in 10 Black, Hispanic, and LGBTQ+ respondents away from their previous residences. In addition, some 32% of Black and Hispanic respondents reported facing discrimination during their recent home search, while 22% of LGBTQ+ respondents reported feeling the same.