Housing affordability

The total price of U.S. homes was $45.3 trillion at the end of 2022, down from a record high of $47.7 trillion in June, according to Redfin's report.

Average housing costs have surged over 40% since 2019, outpacing 15% in wage increases, the National Association of Realtors said.

Although housing values have noticeably flattened in recent months, the share of buyers expecting the search for a new residence to become harder grew, according to the National Association of Home Builders.

Despite the significant annual increase, home buyers saw signs of affordability returning in the latter months of the year.

Increases in values were more likely to stick across the Central U.S, while pandemic boomtowns experienced the biggest declines in median housing costs, according to Realtor.com.

Prices were up by less than 9% year-over-year, according to CoreLogic's report.

Baby boomers downsizing, millennials entering their prime homebuying years and Gen Zers going for luxe rentals in trendy cities are among the trends to watch.

The merger and the consolidation of the mortgage industry would not only reduce the ability for Latinos to participate in homeownership, the effects could cascade to the overall population writes the CEO of the National Association of Hispanic Real Estate Professionals

But costs are still elevated annually in double-digit ranges for 46% of markets, according to the National Association of Realtors.

Fannie Mae announced a pilot rollout of a new special-purpose credit program, while Freddie Mac said it is expediting review of similar new programs from lenders during the Mortgage Bankers Association conference this week.