National News

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Over 40 percent of Boston homes have not recovered their pre-recession value

The prevailing sentiment in the housing market is that it’s a great time to sell, as housing prices and demand have steadily creeped up. While that may be the case, such a rosy portrait of the market doesn’t tell

Renters can afford pricier-than-average homes without increasing monthly expenses

Renters paying the median U.S. rent could afford a house that is 50 percent more expensive than the median U.S. home value, according to a new Zillow study. The study found that with an increase in rent prices across

Sellers believe they have all or more control over the market, survey says

Home-seller confidence got a boost in April this year after home sales and prices picked up in March. Home prices continued an ongoing five-year upward trend, up 7.5 percent from last year to a national median sale price of $273,000. Sales growth

Q1 sellers see highest ROI on homes since 2007

  Homeowners who sold their homes in the first quarter of 2017 saw the highest average price gain for home sellers since the third quarter of 2007, according to a new report from ATTOM Data Solutions. The Q1 2017

Homeownership rate stabilizes, survey says

  In the first quarter of 2017, the homeownership rate was only slightly less than the previous quarter at 63.6 percent, remaining below the 27-year average rate of 66.1 percent, according to the Census Bureau’s Housing Vacancy Survey (HVS). Since the national

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Homes sold faster in March compared to the previous month and year

Properties, on average, remained on the market for 34 days in March 2017, a shorter amount of time compared to February 2017 (45 days) and March of last year (47 days), according to the National Association of Realtors’ monthly Confidence

Low inventory led to cooling homebuyer demand in March

  The Redfin Housing Demand Index decreased in March to 108 from 123 in February, a 14 percent drop, according to Redfin’s latest report. Although the trend of homebuyer demand is cooling down from its record high of 132

Fannie Mae announces new programs to help borrowers with student loan debt

Fannie Mae announced a new student loan cash-out refinance program and policies to help borrowers who are burdened by student loan debt. There are three major policies and programs that will be implemented. Student Loan Cash-Out Refinance: Homeowners will

Getting inside the head of this spring’s homebuyer

  The recently released Active Spring Home Shopper report from realtor.com dives into the mind of this spring’s cohort of homebuyers by breaking down their needs by age group. According to the report, privacy is the top reason out of 10 that

March was the best month for home sales since the market crash

Thanks in part to some slight relief in housing inventory woes, March saw the strongest home sales of any month since the housing market collapse, according to the National Association of Realtors. Home sales in March totaled 5.71 million, the strongest

Boston rents increased from last year while nationwide rents level off

  Boston rents increased 4.0 percent in the past year to an average of $2,351, according to the March Zillow Real Estate Market Report. From 2015 to 2016, rent in Boston increased 5.4 percent. Rents rose only 0.7 percent nationwide compared to

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Single-family housing development to outpace multifamily, report says

  More investors and lenders are predicting an increase in single-family housing development that will outpace multifamily buildings, according to the 2017 Akerman U.S. Real Estate Sector Report. Of those surveyed, 43 percent said single-family homebuilding will be the most active

Housing affordability index down nationwide

  Housing affordability is down nationwide as mortgage rates have increased in February, according to The National Association of Realtors’ latest affordability index. Housing affordability declined 8.7 percent from 175.9 in February 2016 to 160.6 in February 2017. The

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5 facts that describe Generation X homebuyers

With all the talk of Millennials and how they fit into the housing market, Generation X doesn’t get a lot of attention as a home-buying population. Gen X-ers, aged 37 to 51 years, make up the second largest share

Millennials don’t want to be tied down by homeownership, study shows

There are a number of possible reasons why Millennials are not buying homes. That they don’t make enough money and are too saddled with debt are common explanations. While those things are true, a new study puts some numbers

New construction: bigger homes, smaller lots

  New homes are getting bigger, which has helped in balancing out price appreciation while the market sees low inventory and high demand, reports CoreLogic Chief Economist Frank Nothaft, based on Census Bureau data on new residential construction.   What’s changed?

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