Despite recent declines in home sales, sluggish growth in single-family home construction, and mounting affordability concerns, first-time buyers are outperforming other segments of the market, according to a new report released by Genworth Mortgage Insurance. “The first-time home buyer market has been more resilient during the [housing] slowdown compared to repeat buyers,” writes Tian Liu, chief economist at Genworth Mortgage Insurance.About
Most young adults have financial regrets about their home purchase, a new Bankrate survey shows, but much of their grief could have been avoided with proper planning. That’s where you come in: Younger buyers have a need for more professional guidance about the costs of homeownership.Sixty-three percent of millennial homeowners—more than any other generation—expressed buyer’s remorse, most often pertaining to closing costs, home maintenanc
More Americans are becoming homeowners. The national homeownership rate increased slightly to the highest level since 2014 in the fourth quarter of 2018, reaching 64.8 percent, the U.S. Census Bureau reported this week. The homeownership rate has been gradually increasing since reaching an all-time low of 62.9 percent in the second quarter of 2016.Researchers at data analysis firm CoreLogic attribute the housing market’s “healthy path of reco
After declining for three consecutive weeks, mortgage rates are in a holding pattern. The 30-year fixed-rate mortgage is lower than its average a year ago.“Mortgage remained mostly unchanged this week, while mortgage applications rose 5.3 percent from the previous week,” says Sam Khater, Freddie Mac’s chief economist. “The general decline in rates we have seen recently, combined with rebounding pending home sales, hint at a strong sp
Fewer homes were flipped in 2018, but investors are still on the hunt and have not shied away from quick resales, according to a new report from ATTOM Data Solutions, a real estate data firm.Single-family homes and condos that were flipped fell 4 percent in 2018, reaching 207,957 homes, according to ATTOM’s 2018 U.S. Home Flipping Report, released this week. Home flips comprised 5.6 percent of all single-family home and condo sales last year, t
A decade makes a difference in the housing market, according to a new study from LendingTree, an online mortgage marketplace. Since 2009, the median home value has risen nearly $50,000 across the 50 largest U.S. metros.A financial crisis that ignited in 2008 and continued through 2009 caused many Americans to see their home values drop drastically. But in most places, home values now exceed their former 2006 peaks.LendingTree researchers analyzed
First-time buyers are finding the housing market challenging to break into. On average, they have to put in 3.8 offers before their offer is accepted, which is higher than the 2.5 offers that repeat buyers typically make, according to a new survey of about 2,000 U.S. adults from NerdWallet, a personal finance website.Further, 56 percent of first-time buyers say they offered more than the asking price before they were successful in their home purc
Fewer new homes are being built across the country, despite desperate calls from the housing industry to build more. New-home starts plunged to the lowest level in more than two years in December, the U.S. Commerce Department reported Tuesday.New-home construction dropped 11.2 percent in December and is now at the slowest pace of construction since September 2016. Housing starts have dropped 10.2 percent over the past year, with decreases in both
The cap on property taxes will have widespread impact on millions of filers this year. Tax filers will no longer be able to deduct more than $10,000 in state and local taxes from their federal income taxes. An audit released on Tuesday from the U.S. Treasury Department shows that 11 million tax filers, of 150 million income tax returns, will face limits on their property tax write-offs.Parents are increasingly helping their adult children buy the
Pending home sales rebounded in January as all four major regions of the U.S. saw an uptick in contract signings. The largest increase was in the South.The National Association of REALTORS®’ Pending Home Sales Index, a forward-looking indicator based on contract signings, rose 4.6 percent to a reading of 103.2 in January. Nevertheless, contract signings are still down 2.3 percent year over year. This is the thirteenth consecutive month for ann
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