Starter-Home Buyers Gain Leverage as Inventory Rises 4.5% and Mortgage Rates Hold Near 6.8%
Updated
Updated · creators.yahoo.com · Aug 9
Starter-Home Buyers Gain Leverage as Inventory Rises 4.5% and Mortgage Rates Hold Near 6.8%
3 articles · Updated · creators.yahoo.com · Aug 9
Summary
Zillow says first-time buyers now have more negotiating power as starter-home listings sit longer, bidding wars ease and sellers grow more willing to make concessions.
4.5% more starter homes were on the market than a year earlier, and one in four listings cut asking prices in June, versus 20.6% of luxury listings.
The typical starter home is worth about $202,000, up 2.3% year over year, but elevated borrowing costs still limit affordability, with 30-year mortgage rates around 6.6% to 6.79%.
Luxury demand remains stronger: luxury home sales rose 6.2% in May while starter-home sales fell 5.4%, with San Francisco luxury sales up 21.6% even as starter-home sales slipped 1.2%.
Agents say buyers who can afford current payments may benefit from acting before lower rates draw more competition back into the market and push prices higher again.
With starter-home inventory rising but mortgage rates remaining high, is the current buyer-friendly market actually a trap for the financially unprepared?
If seller concessions are replacing price cuts, are first-time buyers truly saving money or just masking an ongoing housing affordability crisis?
Why are buyers in the South scoring major real estate deals while those in the Northeast face skyrocketing prices and fierce competition?