Home Affordability Is Improving—Here’s What That Means for You This Fall

Over the past couple of years, many hopeful homebuyers have struggled with a tough housing market. Skyrocketing home prices, rising mortgage rates, and wages that just couldn’t keep up made homeownership feel out of reach for many. But this fall, things are starting to turn around.

According to the latest data from Redfin, the average monthly mortgage payment is now about $290 lower than it was just a few months ago. That’s a meaningful shift driven by improvements in the three main factors that affect affordability: mortgage rates, home prices, and wages.

Mortgage Rates Are Dropping

Mortgage rates have fallen from around 7% earlier this year to approximately 6.3%. While that might seem like a small change, it can significantly affect your monthly payments. For instance, on a $400,000 loan, this drop could lower your payment by around $190 per month just from the rate decrease alone.

And according to the Mortgage Bankers Association, this shift has already fueled the highest level of buyer demand since 2022.

Home Price Growth Is Slowing

After years of steep increases, home prices are finally stabilizing. Nationally, price growth has slowed to the low single digits, and in some markets, prices have even dipped slightly. This cooling gives buyers a bit more breathing room to plan, budget, and negotiate.

Wages Are On the Rise

Good news on the income front: wages are now growing faster than home prices. The Bureau of Labor Statistics reports annual wage growth near 4%, helping to balance out the cost of homeownership.

The Bottom Line

Buying a home is still a major financial decision but the numbers are starting to shift in buyers' favor. If you hit pause on your home search earlier this year, now might be a smart time to take another look.

Let’s connect to review your goals and budget this fall could be your window of opportunity.

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