Student debt holders and minorities tend to purchase lower-priced homes, leading to lost wealth accumulation over time, according to a new working paper, “Mind the Gap: Home Price Differences By Race and Student Debt.” The research, which evaluates purchase price differences among home buyers from January 2014 to December 2017, was conducted by Jessica Lautz, vice president of demographics and behavioral insights at the National Association o
Buyers are increasingly turning to newly constructed homes for more options. Sales of new single-family homes surged 20.7% month over month in March to a 1.02 million seasonally adjusted annual rate, according to new data from the Department of Housing and Urban Development and the Census Bureau. New-home sales are at the highest annual pace since September 2006.“Our members are seeing strong buyer traffic as continued low mortgage rates are he
Homes with pools have become the target of buyer envy since the pandemic began. Pool additions are soaring, and more house hunters say they want one in their backyard, according to HomeLight’s “Top Agent Insights for Spring 2021” report.Prior to the pandemic, many buyers were shunning properties with pools, which present maintenance issues and potential liability. The average pool can cost between $3,000 and $5,000 per year to maintain, acc
The COVID-19 pandemic has taken a huge economic toll on states across the country to varying degrees.“Clearly, the housing market continues to surge, and things are looking up, more and more, for the U.S. economy in 2021, after a year of major setbacks in many sectors,” says Todd Teta, chief product officer with ATTOM Data Solutions. “But the pandemic still looms large and may pose a threat to the progress made so far, and by extension coul
Million-dollar listings are a hot commodity. The number of homes sold for more than $1 million jumped by 81% in February compared to a year earlier. Meanwhile, the number of homes sold for under $100,000 dropped 26% compared to a year ago, according to data from the National Association of REALTORS®.Wealthy Americans are taking advantage of low mortgage rates, increased savings, and the growth in remote work in order to hunt for larger homes.The
New and advanced product features, along with product quality, price, availability, and green or sustainable features are top priorities for contractors and builders in choosing which products to use in new homes or remodels. Builder Magazine released its annual Brand Use Study, which lists the top products used by builders, developers, and contractors.More than 750 respondents nationwide shared their brand use practices within 52 building produc
The majority of home sale contracts are settling on time, but 26% faced delays in February while 6% were terminated completely, according to the latest REALTORS® Confidence Index. The following chart shows the most common issues sparking a delay to closing.The most common problems leading to a termination of the contract were related to appraisal issues (11%), obtaining financing (10%), and home inspection/environmental issues (9%).Nevertheless,
Some housing analysts have grown concerned about what will happen to the real estate market when temporary foreclosure moratoriums are lifted. Will it spark a wave of new foreclosures and lead to a crisis?Already, foreclosure activity is on the rise, even though the moratoriums are still in place and the government has relaxed requirements for mortgage forbearance due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Foreclosure filings in March rose 5% compared to the
The 30-year fixed-rate mortgage continued to drop this week, heading back near the 3% range.The 30-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 3.04% this week, Freddie mac reports. Mortgage rates are still below a year ago and remain at historical lows, which has proven a boon for the housing market, economists note.“Mortgage rates took another dip this week as the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage decreased by almost ten basis points, week over week,” says
Black millennials between the ages of 26 and 39 are increasingly becoming homeowners during the pandemic. They’re buying homes at higher rates than other Black Americans and previous generations. Their higher rates in real estate have led to an overall increase in the homeownership rate for African Americans, according to an article at BlackEnterprise.com. This is “the path to a middle-class lifestyle and wealth,” Lawrence Yun, chief econom
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