Sales of previously owned homes fell in March, according to new numbers from the National Association of Realtors. The group found sales down 5.9 percent from the month before and 2.4 percent lower than last year at the same time. Lawrence Yun, NAR’s chief economist, says the housing market remains strong despite a sluggish March. “In a stark contrast to the stock and bond markets, household wealth in residential real estate continues to reach new heights,†he continued. “With mortgage delinquencies at near-historical lows, the housing market is on solid footing.†Still, regional results show only the West posting a year-over-year increase in sales, with the Northeast unchanged and the South and Midwest both down from year-before levels. Also in the report, the median price for existing homes was $403,700 in March, up 2.7 percent from one year ago. Inventory also increased, up 8.1 percent month-over-month. (source)

The housing market’s affordability issues are mainly a supply problem. Fewer homes for sale have pushed prices higher for the ones that are available. It’s simple math and the solution is more homes. The National Association of Realtors’ consumer website recently took that equation and applied it to each of the 50 states. The resulting Housing Report Card is a state-by-state breakdown of which states are most affordable and best situated to build enough homes to meet future demand. The grades show the South and Midwest leading the pack. The South because it leads the country in home building and the Midwest due to its affordability. Not surprisingly, the Northeast and West earn lower grades, as they are home to higher prices and more significant construction challenges. Danielle Hale, the website’s chief economist, says conditions vary from state-to-state. “Our state report card rankings reveal stark disparities in housing affordability and home building efforts across the U.S.,†Hale said. “While some states are leading the way with strong home building activity, others are grappling with high housing prices and sluggish construction.†(source)

According to the Mortgage Bankers Association’s Weekly Applications Survey, average mortgage rates increased to their highest level in two months last week. Rates were up across most loan categories, including 30-year fixed-rate loans with both conforming and jumbo balances, loans backed by the Federal Housing Administration, and 15-year fixed-rate loans. The increase led to slower application activity, with refinance demand down 20 percent week-over-week and purchase demand down 7 percent. Joel Kan, MBA’s vice president and deputy chief economist, says demand has fallen but remains better than last year. “Similar to the previous week, economic uncertainty and rate volatility impacted prospective home buyers as we saw a 7 percent decline in purchase applications,†Kan said. “Both conventional and government purchase activity fell relative to the week before, but the overall level of purchase applications was still 6 percent higher than a year ago.†The MBA’s weekly survey has been conducted since 1990 and covers 75 percent of all retail residential mortgage applications. (source)

The home buying process involves a lot of compromise. After all, you’re unlikely to find a house that has every one of the features and amenities on your wish list unless you have one built to your exact specifications. That means you’re going to have to be flexible and you may even have to rethink your priorities once or twice along the way. It seems millennial buyers have already figured this out. According to a new survey from the National Association of Home Builders, millennial home buyers are looking for the most square footage among surveyed generations, but more than half of them also said they’d take a smaller house over a bigger one if it had higher-quality products and amenities. In other words, they’re ready to compromise. Buddy Hughes, chairman of the National Association of Home Builders, says builders are making adjustments too. “Buyers are willing to make compromises to find the best possible home for their families,†Hughes said. “Our nation’s builders are willing to meet buyers where they are and construct a high-quality home to meet their family’s needs.†(source)

The U.S. Census Bureau and the Department of Housing and Urban Development’s most recent residential construction report shows the number of single-family homes that began construction in March was 14.2 percent lower than the month before. The decline, mostly due to economic uncertainty amid rising material costs, brought starts to their lowest level since last summer. But while the number of houses that began construction was down from the month before, the number of single-family homes that were completed rose 1 percent. Also, permits to build new homes increased 1.6 percent – though the improvement was more due to multi-family construction than single-family homes, which slid 2 percent. What does this mean for home buyers? Well, it depends. In areas where the inventory of homes for sale has rebounded, slower new home construction will have less effect than it will in areas in need of available homes for sale. Where inventory lags, fewer new homes could lead to increased competition and pressure on prices. (source)

If you’re buying a house and haven’t thought about property tax, you should. It can add hundreds of dollars to your monthly household expenses and, according to one new study, it’s rising. ATTOM Data Solutions released its 2024 property tax analysis for 85.7 million single-family homes across the country and it shows the average annual tax rose to $4,172 last year – a 2.7 percent increase over the year before. Rob Barber, ATTOM’s CEO, says higher property tax isn’t just about home values. “While rising home values can influence property taxes, they don’t automatically lead to higher bills for homeowners,†Barber said. “In many areas, we’ve seen taxes increase not just due to property appreciation, but also because of growing costs to operate local governments and schools or shifts in how tax burdens are distributed.†In other words, it’s complicated. But regardless of the cause, increasing property tax is a good reason for buyers to get an idea of what they’d be paying on homes they’re considering buying. If nothing else, it’ll help avoid an unpleasant surprise further down the road. (source)

Economic uncertainty has home builders concerned but an early-spring mortgage rate retreat helped bump builder confidence higher, according to the latest results of the National Association of Home Builder index. The index, based on a monthly survey, measures how optimistic home builders are on a scale where any number above 50 indicates more builders view conditions as good than poor. In April, the index bumped up one point to 40. Buddy Hughes, NAHB’s chairman, says builder confidence was helped by rates. “The recent dip in mortgage rates may have pushed some buyers off the fence in March, helping builders with sales activity,” Hughes said. “At the same time, builders have expressed growing uncertainty over market conditions as tariffs have increased price volatility for building materials at a time when the industry continues to grapple with labor shortages and a lack of buildable lots.” Despite the challenges, the index component measuring current sales conditions rose two points in April. (source)

According to the Mortgage Bankers Association’s Weekly Application Survey, average mortgage rates spiked last week from one week earlier. Rates were up across all loan categories including 30-year fixed-rate loans with both conforming and jumbo balances, loans backed by the Federal Housing Administration, 15-year fixed-rate loans, and 5/1 ARMs. Mike Fratantoni, MBA’s senior vice president and chief economist, says the increase slowed mortgage demand. “Mortgage rates moved 20 basis points higher last week, abruptly slowing the pace of mortgage application activity with refinance volume dropping 12 percent and purchase volume falling 5 percent for the week,†Fratantoni said. “Purchase volume remains almost 13 percent above last year’s level, but economic uncertainty and the volatility in rates is likely to make at least some prospective buyers more hesitant to move forward with a purchase.†Overall, the Market Composite Index – which measures both refinance and purchase activity – was down 8.5 percent week-over-week. The MBA’s weekly survey has been conducted since 1990 and covers 75 percent of all retail residential mortgage applications. (source)

For the most part, home buyers aren’t looking to move too far from home. In fact, 60 percent of us live within 10 miles of our childhood home, according to numbers from Consumer Affairs. That means most us who are thinking about making a move are thinking about moving within our own state. But which state has the most in-state movers? A new study looked at the numbers. It found the state best at keeping its residents was Texas, with 93 percent of Texans looking for a house somewhere in Texas. Next up was Michigan at 92 percent, followed by Wisconsin, Ohio, Minnesota, Oklahoma, and Missouri. Based on the number of midwestern states on the list, affordability could be a big factor in which states keep the most residents. After all, the Midwest is still the country’s most affordable region for home buyers. On the other end of the list, Alaska, Hawaii, and Rhode Island were the places that saw the most movers leaving for another state. (source)

The Mortgage Bankers Association’s Mortgage Credit Availability Index is a monthly measure of whether obtaining a mortgage has become easier or more difficult for borrowers. A decline in the Index indicates lending standards have tightened while an increase means credit has loosened. In March, the Index rose 2.5 percent. That’s good for potential buyers, as it means their ability to secure financing has improved. Joel Kan, MBA’s vice president and deputy chief economist, says credit availability is now at its highest level in years. “Mortgage credit availability increased to its highest level since January 2023, driven by growth in cash-out refinance programs, as recent mortgage rate volatility has opened the door for some borrowers to refinance†Kan said. “The credit supply growth was primarily in conventional programs, with jumbo availability at its highest in five years. Government credit availability was essentially unchanged over the month.†(source)