Is the dream of home ownersahip fading away?

The United States last saw a drop in home ownership in the second quarter of 2016, when there were 74.36 million deed holders - down 0.1% from the 74.4 million at the same point in 2015. The key metric had steadily increased each year since then, climbing to 75.41 million in 2017, 78.01 million in 2018, and 78.42 million in 2019 and so on - until now. 

Over a decade of low mortgage rates since the 2008 financial crisis had helped people buy homes until recently, explained Chen Zhao, Redfin’s head of economics research. 

 

“That all of a sudden changed in 2022, when we had high inflation and interest rates started hiking up” - sparking a “huge increase in mortgage rates,” Zhao said. 

“And now that we’ve been at this much higher level of mortgage rates for three years, that’s what’s weighing on the homeownership rate, and that’s why we’re seeing the rate falling now,” Zhao told The Post. 

So - where did they go? The article doesn't answer that question, but it's safe to assume the combination of unaffordable first homes and the proliferation of rental units is the likely answer...

 

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It's a helluva deal if they sell 1,000+ a day. Click on it and see for yourself...

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