The only way to change that bleak fortune is to reverse the public policies that got us here. Before the dream of homeownership can be restored, the big-government nightmare must end.remains unattainable for the average person. Amid a cost-of-living crisis, saving enough for a downpayment and then affording a monthlyAdding up the monthly cost of principal and interest on a mortgage, property taxes, and insurance amounts to half the average wage earner’s monthly take-home pay.
But the problem is also widespread: In 98.8% of counties nationwide, homes are less affordable than their respective historic averages. Just as the predictable result of government overspending was inflation, so, too, was the rise in interest rates that followed. The sheer size of the multitrillion-dollar deficits of the last several years caused prices and interest rates to jump significantly.
Simultaneously, many existing homeowners have a huge incentive not to sell: They can’t afford to lose their ultralow interest rate. Millions of people got mortgages or refinanced loans at around 2% or 3% in 2020 and 2021. Selling their home today means losing that interest rate in exchange for one at 7% or 8%.