Housing Market Check-in: The Good, The Bad, The Hope, & The Hung Heads Among American Home Buyers
Almost exactly forty years ago, in October of 1981, interest rates for 30-year fixed mortgages peaked at 18.45%. Housing affordability, measured by dividing house prices by gross annual earnings, hovered at a history-making low of 62—that means the average American family had roughly 62% of the income necessary to qualify for a home priced at the median in the market. No one thought it was a good time to buy a home. Q2 2021 hedge fund letters, conferences and more Rounding the corner into 2022, the two housing markets couldn’t look more dissimilar. Interest rates are now turning heads again, b...