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Housing Market

From rates to reality: why innovative homeownership alternatives matter now

Affordability, Contributors, Down Payment Assistance, Home Prices, Housing Market, HWmember, Mortgage Rates, Opinion, Real Estate /

For generations, the American Dream was synonymous with homeownership — a white picket fence, a backyard and the pride of owning a place to call your own. But today, that dream is undergoing a quiet transformation. With the national median home price now exceeding $426,000, according to NAR, the goal for many Americans has shifted […]

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Government shutdown halts new reverse mortgage endorsements

FHA, Government Lending, Government Shutdown, HECM, Housing Market, HWmember, Reverse, Reverse Mortgage Daily /

The Federal Housing Administration (FHA) said Wednesday it will continue processing claims during the government shutdown but cannot endorse new Home Equity Conversion Mortgages (HECMs) until funding is restored. That information was confirmed by the National Reverse Mortgage Lenders Association (NRMLA). Because most reverse mortgages fall under the FHA’s HECM program, FHA loan endorsements stop

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Better launches bank statement HELOC for small business owners

Better, HELOC, Housing Market, HWmember, Mortgage, Vishal Garg /

Better announced on Wednesday the launch of its Bank Statement home equity line of credit (HELOC) aimed at the 36.2 million small business owners in the United States who often don’t fit within traditional underwriting standards. The new program lets self-employed borrowers access home equity without tax returns, W-2s or profit-and-loss statements. Instead, applicants can

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Home price growth drops to lowest level in two years

Case-Shiller, home price, Home Price Appreciation, Home Price Index, Housing Inventory, Housing Market, HWmember, Real Estate /

Home prices are continuing to rise, but at a much slower pace. Home prices rose 1.7% nationwide in July, according to the S&P Cotality Case-Shiller Index released Tuesday.  This pace is slower than the 1.9% annual growth recorded in June and marks the slowest pace of annual home price appreciation since July 2023. In comparison,

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Home price growth drops to lowest level in two years

Case-Shiller, home price, Home Price Appreciation, Home Price Index, Housing Inventory, Housing Market, HWmember, Real Estate /

Home prices are continuing to rise, but at a much slower pace. Home prices rose 1.7% nationwide in July, according to the S&P Cotality Case-Shiller Index released Tuesday.  This pace is slower than the 1.9% annual growth recorded in June and marks the slowest pace of annual home price appreciation since July 2023. In comparison,

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Mortgage spreads are the hero of the 2025 housing market

Federal Reserve, Housing Inventory, Housing Market, Housing Market Tracker, HWmember, Mortgage Rates, Purchase Applications /

Mortgage spreads are the hero of housing in 2025, quietly helping housing demand pick up even when nobody else notices. What are mortgage spreads? In the slow dance between the 10-year yield and 30-year mortgage rates since 1971, the mortgage spread is the distance between them — the key variable keeping them close or distant. 

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NFIP set to expire as shutdown, disaster seasons collide

Climate Change, Disaster Relief, Flood insurance, Government Lending, Housing Market, HWmember, National Flood Insurance Program, Regulatory, Trump administration /

With the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) set to expire Sept. 30, just as hurricane and wildfire seasons collide with the threat of a federal government shutdown, uncertainty is mounting for homeowners, insurers and the housing market. The NFIP has faced repeated short-term extensions and lapses, including under the Biden administration two years ago. Between

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The Great Stay: Why the US housing market is divided in two

Arizona, Florida, Home Sales, Housing Inventory, Housing Market, HWmember, Real Estate, Texas /

I recently gave a talk to a few hundred real estate professionals in Chicago. I started with the map below of the U.S. showing the days on market for pending home sales in different states. It’s a stark illustration that the country is divided into two distinct real estate markets.  The states with the shortest

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Existing home sales show year-over-year growth again 

Existing home sales, Housing Inventory, Housing Market, HWmember, Purchase Applications /

Existing home sales have shown year-over-year growth for two consecutive months, as mortgage rates have remained below 6.64% for the same period. However, let’s remember that the bar is very low for yearly growth. In fact, for many months, I’ve said that the reports coming out from June to October — which will be reported

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New home sales shocked, but are these numbers legit?

Homebuilders, Housing Inventory, Housing Market, HWmember, Mortgage Rates, New Home Sales, U.S. Census Bureau /

Today’s report on new home sales printed one of the most surprising results I’ve seen in a while, showcasing significant growth. Now, we should have expected some growth in new home sales, given that mortgage rates have declined recently. In fact, each time mortgage rates have approached 6% since late 2022, new home sales have

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