By the Numbers

With affordability improving for apartment dwellers — and mortgage rates and home prices still high — renters may continue to delay home purchases.

The 30-year fixed rate averaged just under 7% this week, according to Freddie Mac, but some economists are already revising their 2025 forecasts upward.

Facing affordability challenges, the share of 25- to 34-year-olds living with parents has risen after trending down during the pandemic.

Housing starts were way up for the year, and prospects look good heading into 2025 — but the economy and policy decisions could present some challenges.

Rates increased for a fifth straight week, but the latest inflation data could be a sign that relief is coming.

When the Fed lowers interest rates, a drop in mortgage rates often follows — but recently, the opposite has happened. Here’s why.

After improving earlier in the year, sentiment plunged between the third and fourth quarters of 2024, though flippers were less pessimistic than landlords.

The employment data is good news for workers, but it means the Federal Reserve is unlikely to cut rates later this month, keeping borrowing costs elevated.

Population growth is slowing, which means fewer new households — and fewer new homes needed. But immigration is still a wild card.

Weekly averages moved closer to 7%, but upcoming labor market reports could change the trajectory.

Over a third of existing homeowners — and 43% of those over 60 — say they don’t plan to ever sell their home, a Redfin survey found.

Consumer sentiment was relatively high in December, largely driven by expectations of declining mortgage rates in 2025.

While rates have risen by nearly a percentage point since late September, buyers appear to have “recalibrated expectations” — and home sales have improved.

2024 was supposed to be the year that home sales bounced back, but rates, inflation (and buyers) had other plans.

It’s (still) all about home prices. Inventory is up, but much of it is stale, while flattening rents are keeping renters in their homes longer.

In a recent poll, 37% of remote workers said they would look for a new job if asked to come back to the office full time, citing the commute as a key factor.

“Buyers and sellers are gradually returning” but inventory could take a hit if homeowners stay locked in to their lower rates, experts say.

But there is still competition for homes, especially at lower price points, where first-time buyers cross paths with buyers on the investment side.

Existing home sales rebounded in November, pushing annual sales past the 4 million mark. A big jump in mortgage rates may quash momentum, however.

Look for just two cuts next year — half the number previously forecast — as the Federal Reserve predicts inflation will remain high.