Westcor Land Title Insurance Co. is now the second title vendor taking part in Fannie Mae‘s title insurance waiver pilot program. Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) Director Bill Pulte announced the move in a social media post. The waiver pilot, relaunched by Fannie Mae in March 2024, allows approved mortgage lenders to use an automated […]
Westcor joins Fannie Mae title waiver pilot Read More »
“Marry the house, date the rate” is a phrase that was popularized during the post-pandemic era of rising mortgage rates. Lenders urged borrowers to focus on finding a house they were head over heels with and worry about their interest rate down the line. Borrowers who were accustomed to rates hovering near 3% didn’t realize
‘Dating the rate’ misled borrowers. Now they’re financially strained Read More »
The U.S. faced a shortfall of 4.7 million homes in 2023 — the largest housing deficit on record — according to a new Zillow analysis of U.S. Census Bureau data. Persistent inventory shortages continue to drive the national housing affordability crisis, limiting access to homeownership and forcing millions of people to share homes with non-relatives.
Zillow: US housing shortage hit 4.7 million in 2023 Read More »
Realtor.com has added a new feature to its My Home dashboard, allowing users to access property tax monitoring and appeals services through a partnership with Ownwell, a property tax appeal company. The integration comes amid rising homeownership costs across the country, with property taxes often cited as one of the largest annual expenses after mortgage
Realtor.com adds property tax appeal tool with Ownwell integration Read More »
Despite strong interest in home-buying, affordability challenges and misconceptions about down payments are deterring many potential buyers, according to a new survey from NeighborWorks America. The nonprofit organization reports that 27% of U.S. adults say they plan to buy a home within the next year. However, among those who are postponing or not planning to
Survey: Down payment concerns delay homeownership for many Read More »
Despite growing attention around all-cash transactions, most Americans — especially first-time buyers — continue to finance their home purchases, according to new data from the National Association of Realtors (NAR). Among primary residence buyers, 74% financed their home purchase in 2024. That share jumps to 91% for first-time buyers, said Jessica Lautz, NAR’s deputy chief
NAR: Homebuyers still have down payment misconceptions Read More »
The U.S. Conference of Mayors formally endorsed a bipartisan statement to support the Let America Build campaign — a housing policy initiative backed by Realtor.com — during the organization’s annual meeting in Tampa on Sunday. The resolution — introduced by Austin Mayor Kirk Watson — acknowledges the mounting housing affordability crisis, and it calls for
Mayors back Realtor.com’s campaign to address the housing crisis Read More »
Soaring home prices, limited inventory and elevated mortgage rates have exacerbated the housing affordability crisis in many housing markets when viewed in the context of household incomes, which have remained generally stagnant. In a new study, Zillow compiled related metrics to measure the affordability gap in terms of how much more income a household would
The five housing markets where homeownership is still affordable Read More »
Multi-generational living is on the rise. According to the National Association of Realtors (NAR), 17% of homebuyers purchase a home to share with parents, adult children, or extended family. That’s the highest share ever recorded by NAR (see graph below): And what’s behind the increase? Affordability. NAR explains: “In 2024, a notable 36% of homebuyers
Multi-Generational Homebuying Hit a Record High – Here’s Why Read More »
An Arlington County, Virginia, “Missing Middle” housing initiative has been given new life following a Virginia Court of Appeals decision Tuesday — dismissing a lawsuit aiming to overturn the zoning overhaul. A report from WTOP News showed the court finding that a group of homeowners who filed suit failed to include real estate developers as
Virginia appeals court backs ‘missing middle’ housing policy Read More »