Real Estate

As mortgage rates climb toward 7%, the decline in new listings of homes for sale has slowed since December. A new Redfin report examines why many homebuyers continue to pull back from their home search.

“Homebuyers are starting to feel more confident as mortgage rates tick down closer to 6% than 7% and the overall economy chugs along with surprising resilience, especially in the labor market. Steadily cooling inflation is likely to prevent mortgage rates from jumping back up,” said Redfin Economics Research Lead Chen Zhao.

A new study from LendingTree analyzed the most popular metros for millennial homebuyers, as data revealed roughly 53% of mortgage offers went to millennials in 2022.

“Applications for new home purchases increased in January, driven by typical seasonal patterns and lower mortgage rates,” said Joel Kan, MBA’s VP and Deputy Chief Economist. “The 30-year fixed rate declined almost 40 basis points over the month, and this stirred some homebuyers to act."

“Real estate experts are predicting a large increase in the number of million-dollar homes across the country. The trend is being driven by an influx of wealthy buyers looking to invest in luxury properties and a steady rise in property values in certain areas,” said Jennifer Spinelli, founder and CEO of Niche Home Buyer.

“Homebuilder sentiment increased for the second consecutive month in February," said First American Deputy Chief Economist Odeta Kushi. "Conditions are still considered ‘poor’ overall, but the improvement signals that builders are feeling cautiously optimistic about the months to come.”

A new report from the American Enterprise Institute found multiple pitfalls in current governmental and GSE data and recommends that they turn their eye to individual appraisers to get a better picture of potential racial bias.

A new ATTOM report found that median single-family home and condo prices decreased from Q3 2022 to Q4 2022 in 56% of Opportunity Zones nationwide, decreasing at least 5% in almost half.

A new Flyhomes survey revealed an estimated 78% of aspiring homeowners have slowed or stopped their home search completely, with the overwhelming majority citing high interest rates.

“That said, it’s important to note that while these examples can shed some light on why homeownership rates are relatively low for Black people, they’re not all the reasons why a person who identifies as Black may struggle to become a homeowner,” said Jacob Channel, LendingTree’s Senior Economist.