Mortgage Activity Remains Lower Midway Through Spring Buying Season

By Housing
Per the Mortgage Bankers Association’s (MBA) survey through the week ending May 3rd, total mortgage activity increased 2.6% from the previous week, and the average 30-year fixed-rate mortgage (FRM) rate fell 11 basis points to 7.18%. The 30-year FRM has risen 17 basis points over the past month as rates remained at around seven percent…

At 2022 Rates, 10 Million More Households Could Afford a New Home

By Housing
According to the latest press release from Freddie Mac, the average rate on a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage has now risen to approximately 7.25%. As the data posted on NAHB’s priced-out web page shows, at this rate only about 27.5 million (out of a total of 134.7 million) U.S. households could afford to buy a median-priced…

Residential Building Wages Continued to Rise

By Housing
In March, residential building workers’ wages continued to grow but at a relatively slower pace. After an acceleration of a 6.2% increase in the previous month, the year-over-year (YOY) growth rate for residential building worker wages slowed to 5.1% in March. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) report, average hourly earnings (AHE) for…

Home Buyers’ Ideal Community

By Housing
NAHB’s latest study on consumer preferences—What Home Buyers Really Want Study*— asked about the features and amenities buyers want in the home, but also about the type of community where they would like to live.  The question is important because the home that successfully appeals to buyers doesn’t exist in a vacuum—it sits inside a…