Despite low mortgage rates, America's housing market keeps many first-time buyers on the sidelines

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Affordability constraints in the still-competitive real-estate market are making it harder for first-time home buyers to lock in deals.

There’s been a rebound in home-buying demand in recent weeks, as evidenced by mortgage application data. But first-time buyers aren’t behind the surge.

“‘As home-price appreciation continues at a double-digit pace, buyers of newer, pricier homes continue to dominate purchase activity.’” In the most recent week, FHA loans made up only 9.4% of overall purchase loan applications, down from 10.2% during the same week in 2020. “The early part of 2021 saw an overheated market, in which pandemic-accelerated demand for homes ran headlong into a market starved for inventory, due to over a decade of underbuilding,” he added. As of the mid-point of 2021, there was a shortage of around 5.2 million homes, based on analysis from Realtor.com.

So far this fall, the housing market has cooled from the crazed pace earlier in 2021, while maintaining a higher rate of home sales than is typical for this time of year. But inflation has put a dent in would-be buyers’ wallets — particularly when it comes to the rising cost of rent. According to the National Association of Realtors, 73% of first-time buyers over the past year were previously renters.

 

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