Will Housing Affordability Improve?

Housing affordability in the United States experienced a slight improvement last year, marking the first positive shift in four years. A household earning the median income of $83,782 would have allocated 41.8% of their earnings toward monthly housing costs for a median-priced home, a modest decrease from 42.2% in 2023. Despite this progress, affordability remains significantly strained compared to the 30% threshold commonly deemed manageable.

Ralph’s Take

Will housing affordability improve in 2025? It’s difficult to predict, but mortgage rates are likely to play a key role. In 2024, the average mortgage rate was 6.72%, a slight dip from 6.87% in 2023. While modest, this reduction…

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Visual of the Week 

Since 2004, home values in Westchester County have seen substantial growth. If you’re a homeowner wondering if it even makes sense to move this year, you could have enough equity to buy your next home outright.

Find out your home’s equity position. Contact us today!

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FHFA: 73% of Mortgages Still Under 5%

The highest level of mortgages over 6% since 2016.

While mortgage rates remain significantly higher than three years ago, the pool of borrowers with lower-rate loans is steadily eroding as most new homeowners are securing loans in the 6% to 7% range. The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) reports that 73.3% of U.S. mortgage holders now enjoy interest rates below 5.0%, a drop of 12.2 percentage points from the Q1 2022 high of 85.5%.

As borrowers adjust to the new normal, opportunities for refinancing may continue to emerge. A glimpse of this occurred in September 2024 when the average 30-year fixed rate briefly dipped to 6.11%. Savvy homeowners with higher-rate loans seized that…

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The Most Unique Home Searches of 2024

Zillow’s natural language search is redefining how we house-hunt. This AI-powered feature has opened a window into what buyers are dreaming of — and it’s not all patios and garages. Since its 2023 launch, the tool has highlighted priorities ranging from the practical to the whimsical. Think “laser tag rooms,” “spooky charm,” or even requests as niche as personal bowling alleys.

The most popular search terms were “pool,” topping the list in 38 states, and “garage,” leading in 46 states. However, some buyers got creative: at least one person in 22 states searched for “haunted” homes, a shopper in Colorado looked for a property with a “roller coaster,” and someone else scoured the entire country…

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