research articles on housing finance

How to Increase Housing Supply and Access to Safe and Affordable Financing

Resources about pew’s state-level work on housing.

The Pew Charitable Trusts’ housing policy initiative works to help policymakers address the high cost of housing by studying availability, financing, and zoning and land-use regulations.

Housing is most families’ largest household expenditure, and millions of Americans are struggling to meet the rising costs of rent and homeownership. Pew conducts research to explore the challenges that consumers face and how better policy can help overcome barriers to housing availability and boost people’s access to safe financing. Pew’s work also highlights states that offer scalable solutions that reduce homelessness and make housing more affordable.

Strong Bipartisan Support for Policies That Boost Housing

For most Americans, housing is their largest regular expense, but an acute housing shortage of an estimated 4 million to 7 million homes and resulting skyrocketing rents and home prices mean millions more households are struggling to afford housing than in the recent past. Policymakers at all levels are looking at ways to help expand the supply.

Get monthly data and expert policy recommendations aimed at advancing Americans’ financial security.

Restrictive Zoning in Virginia Hurts Housing Affordability

Housing costs to buy or rent in Virginia are near an all-time high, driven by a housing shortage estimated at 105,000 homes that reaches most regions of the commonwealth. Nationally, half of American households who rent are spending at least 30% of their income to do so, and a majority of low-income households spend at least 50%.

Zoning Is Raising Housing Costs and Homelessness in Arizona

Arizona policymakers, like their peers in other states, are considering how to respond to a nationwide housing shortage that is pushing rents and housing costs to record levels. From August 2017 to August 2023, rental prices across Arizona surged by 53%, with even higher percentages in Tucson, Mesa, Glendale, and Phoenix. Although Arizona has long been known for its affordability, 53% of Phoenix-area renters in multi-family housing are now cost-burdened, spending 30% or more of income on rent.

A Foundation in Montana: Housing in America

In this episode, we hear from Montana state lawmakers Daniel and Katie Zolnikov about the bipartisan legislation they championed to address rising concerns about access to housing. And Indigenous advocates in Montana, Jody Cahoon Perez, Tonya Plummer, and Patrick Yawakie, discuss how they’re helping their Tribal communities seek more affordable and culturally appropriate housing.

Lot-Size Reform Unlocks Homeownership in Houston

Spurred by high and rising housing costs, policymakers across the country are seeking ways to make homes more affordable for Americans at all income levels.

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Key facts about housing affordability in the U.S.

A rising share of Americans say the availability of affordable housing is a major problem in their local community. In October 2021, about half of Americans (49%) said this was a major problem where they live, up 10 percentage points from early 2018. In the same 2021 survey, 70% of Americans said young adults today have a harder time buying a home than their parents’ generation did.

A variety of factors have set the stage for the financial challenges American homeowners and renters have been facing in the housing market, including incomes that haven’t kept pace with housing cost increases and a housing construction slowdown . A surge in homebuying spurred by record low mortgage interest rates during the COVID-19 pandemic has further strained the availability of homes.

Here are some of the key measures of the housing affordability crunch in the United States and the reasons behind it.

This Pew Research Center analysis about housing affordability in America draws from Center surveys designed to understand Americans’ views and preferences for where they live. It also uses outside data from sources including the Federal Reserve Bank and the U.S. Census Bureau.

Everyone who took the Pew Research Center surveys cited is a member of the Center’s American Trends Panel (ATP), an online survey panel that is recruited through national, random sampling of residential addresses. This way nearly all U.S. adults have a chance of selection. The survey is weighted to be representative of the U.S. adult population by gender, race, ethnicity, partisan affiliation, education and other categories. Read more about the ATP’s methodology .

Rising demand for housing meets limited supply

• As home sales have boomed, active housing listings have dropped and the median home sale price has surged, according to data from the Federal Reserve. The number of active housing listings in the U.S. was at its lowest in at least five years in January 2022, with 408,922 active listings on the market. That’s a 60% drop from about 1 million listings in February 2020, just before the coronavirus recession hit the U.S. Around the same time, the national median sale price for a single-family home jumped 25% from $327,100 in the fourth quarter of 2019 (the last full quarter unaffected by the COVID-19 recession) to $408,100 in the fourth quarter of 2021, the most recent data available. The greatest increases were in the West, Midwest and Northeast. Housing vacancy rates, meanwhile, have dropped over the last decade. The vacancy rate for rental units fell from about 10% in 2010 to 5.6% at the end of 2021. The rate for homeowner units is down from about 2.6% in 2010 to 0.9% in 2021 (the most recent year with available data).
• Housing availability has been squeezed by a near-record increase in the number of American homeowners in 2020, a Pew Research Center analysis of U.S. Census Bureau data found. There were an estimated 2.1 million more homeowners in the fourth quarter of 2020 than there were a year earlier, equal to the previous record increase in homeowners, which occurred during the housing boom between 2003 and 2004. During 2020, the U.S. homeownership rate also increased to 65.8%, up from 65.1% a year earlier – a large year-over-year change, but still below the historical peak of 69.2% in 2004. The homeownership rate in the fourth quarter of 2021 (65.5%) was not statistically different from the rates in the fourth quarter of 2020 (65.8%) and the third quarter of 2021 (65.4%). Homeownership among households headed by White Americans rose an estimated 0.8 points from 2019 to 2020 – the only racial or ethnic group to see a statistically significant increase during that time. (Homeownership rates did not significantly increase for any racial or ethnic group between 2020 and 2021). In the fourth quarter of 2021, 74% of White adults owned a home, compared with 43% of Black Americans and 48% of Hispanic Americans. These disparities in homeownership have persisted over decades.

Renters are feeling the strain

• In 2020, 46% of American renters spent 30% or more of their income on housing, including 23% who spent at least 50% of their income this way, according to the most recent data available from the U.S. Census Bureau . This meets the Department of Housing and Urban Development’s definition of being “cost burdened.” Although spending 30% of income on housing has long been considered the most a household should spend in order to have money left over for essentials, some researchers have argued this housing affordability measure should be adjusted to reflect changes in the cost of other necessities, types of households and other factors.

• Renters across the U.S. have seen the average rent rise 18% over the last five years, outpacing inflation, according to consumer price index data from  the Bureau of Labor Statistics . Between 2017 and 2022, the cost of all goods and services increased by 16% due to inflation. During that span, the growth in rent prices exceeded inflation in every region but the Northeast: The average rent rose 21% in the West, 20% in the South and 18% in the Midwest. Rents were up 12% in the Northeast during that time.  From February 2020 to February 2022, rents were up 6%, compared with a 10% inflation rate amid loosening coronavirus restrictions.
• Renters tend to skew toward the lower ends of the economic scale when it comes to income and wealth , according to data from the Federal Reserve’s 2019  Survey of Consumer Finances . That year, about six-in-ten Americans in the lowest income quartile (61%) rented their homes, as did 88% of people with net worths below the 25th percentile. People with lower incomes or net worths were more likely to be renters: Only 10.5% of people in the top income quartile, for example, were renters. Younger Americans and those who are Black or Hispanic are more likely to be renters, according to an August 2021 Pew Research Center analysis of U.S. Census Bureau data. Roughly a third of U.S. households (35%) were headed by renters in 2021, the last year for which the U.S. Census Bureau has reliable estimates. Households headed by Black or African American adults are more likely than the population overall to rent their homes (57% rent), along with 52% of Hispanic- or Latino-led households. Around a quarter of households led by non-Hispanic White adults (26%) rent. Americans younger than 35 are far more likely to rent than those in older age groups: 62% of this age group lives in rentals compared with 39% of those ages 35 to 44, and 30% of 45- to 54-year-olds.
• Looking ahead, Americans anticipate continued rent increases in 2022, according to the Federal Reserve Bank of New York’s Survey of Consumer Expectations . Americans expect that rents will increase by 10% this year – that’s larger than the expected increase in price for any other commodity, including food (9.2%), college education (9.0%) and gas (8.8%).
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CRITICAL ANALYSIS OF HOUSING FINANCE SECTOR IN INDIA WITH SPECIAL REFERENCE TO THE ASSESSMENT OF HOUSING SHORTAGE

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Affordable housing statistics: Our 2024 report 

Rebecca Henderson is a contributing writer for USA TODAY Homefront with expertise in automotive and personal finance. Her work has been featured on MarketWatch, The Drive, AutoInsurance.com, FINN and Autoversed. Her latest writing incorporates research on electric cars and financial literacy. Most recently she turned her focus on homeownership and topics such as mold remediation. Outside of writing, she spends her time fishing, hiking and exploring new experiences.

A lack of affordable housing can make it harder for prospective homebuyers to purchase a home. Halfway through 2024, tight economic conditions persist, forcing struggling Americans to reconsider their homeownership budgets and moving timelines. In fact, the U.S. Census Bureau found that 42% of people who moved in 2022 did so for housing-related reasons, and 7.7% specifically moved in search of more affordable housing.

The research team at USA TODAY Homefront analyzed affordable housing statistics and data from organizations associated with homeownership. To increase your odds of relocating to a state with affordable housing, follow our experts’ advice and research how booking an interstate moving company will affect your budget.

Over three-quarters (77%) of American households cannot afford a median-priced home in America, which is $495,750 in 2024.

Lansing, Michigan, is the most affordable housing market among major metro areas analyzed.

Bay City, Michigan, is the most affordable housing market among small metro areas analyzed.

California has the most expensive housing markets — less than 3% of homes sold in the Los Angeles-Long Beach-Glendale area were affordable for those earning a $98,200 median income.

The low-income housing market endures a 7.3 million deficit in rental housing units, which affects all 50 states, with Arizona, California and Nevada among the top three.

Top affordable housing trends in 2024

Assuming only a 10% down payment and a 6.5% mortgage rate, over 75% of households can’t afford a median-priced new home listed at $495,750 in 2024, according to the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB). In addition, nearly half of households (66.6 million people) don’t make enough to afford even a $250,000 home. A $45,975 salary qualifies a household for a $150,000 mortgage, but only 40.5 million households can afford such terms. 

 “With a nationwide shortage of roughly 1.5 million homes and apartments, the lack of housing is the primary cause of America’s growing housing affordability challenges,” said James Tobin, president of the NAHB . “The housing shortage, coupled with excessive regulations and costly zoning, density and growth restrictions, have sent home prices soaring and put upward pressure on rents.”

Home prices continue to rise, with Redfin Home Price Index data indicating over six months of price growth, putting the market in the realm of pre-pandemic levels. Although the median family income grew by 5.3% year over year in January of 2024, monthly mortgage payments increased by 9.1% during that time, according to the National Association of Realtors’ (NAR) Housing Affordability Index . Within this index, a 100 indicates that families can manage a 20% down payment and mortgage payments of less than a fourth of their income (mortgages above this 25% mark quickly become burdensome). For reference, the most affordable region (the Midwest) has an index of 143.9 and the least affordable region (the West) has an index of 75.5.

Insights gathered from the NAR’s Housing Affordability Index

• The national index peaked in January 2024 at 105.5. 
• The Midwest region ranks as the most affordable, with an index of 143.9 and a qualifying income of $68,016, well below the $97,908 median income. 
• A qualifying income of $145,296 puts the West dead last in affordability with an index of 75.5. 
• Nationally, monthly mortgage payments increased from 22.9% in January 2023 to 23.7% in 2024. 
• Among all regions, the West exceeds the burdensome threshold with 33.1% of a household’s monthly income required to make mortgage payments. 
• In the Midwest, mortgage payments comprise only 17.4% of a household’s monthly income. 
• Housing affordability declined from January 2023 to January 2024, with the highest decline in the Northeast at 8.6% and the lowest decline in the South at 2.2%.

“America’s affordable housing and homelessness crisis is caused by two primary drivers: the severe shortage of homes affordable to people with the lowest incomes, and the wide gap between incomes and housing costs,” said Sarah Saadian , senior vice president of public policy and field organizing for the National Low Income Housing Coalition (NLIHC).

Most affordable housing markets

The Midwest hosts four of the top five most affordable major and small housing markets, according to the NAHB. In Lansing-East Lansing, Michigan — the most affordable major market — nearly 80% of home purchases in the last quarter of 2023 were within reach for families who earned $97,800 or more. Among the most affordable small housing markets, more than 88% of homes were affordable to families making at least $82,300 in Bay City, Michigan.

Least affordable housing markets

California neighborhoods top the most expensive major and minor housing markets lists nationwide, per NAHB data. Los Angeles-Long Beach-Glendale, California, ranks as the least affordable area, with less than 3% of homes sold in the fourth quarter of 2023 within budget for families earning a median income of $98,200. The Santa Maria-Santa Barbara area was slightly more affordable, but only 5.2% of existing homes were affordable for families earning the median income of $107,300.

Affordable housing for low-income families

Low-income families face a 7.3 million national shortage of available and affordable rental homes, with nearly a fourth of all major metropolitan areas coming up over 100,000 units short, according to the National Low Income Housing Coalition (NLIHC). Put another way, low-income individuals can afford only 34 out of every 100 homes nationwide. Each state has a deficit of  affordable housing, but the shortage is starkest in the following states.

• Nevada: 14 of every 100 homes are affordable 
• Arizona and California: 24 of every 100 homes are affordable 
• Alaska, Florida and Texas: 25 of every 100 homes are affordable 
• Oregon: 26 of every 100 homes are affordable

In contrast, some of the most affordable states include South Dakota (57 to every 100 homes), Mississippi (55) and West Virginia (53). In Maine, Rhode Island and Wyoming, 51 out of every 100 homes are affordable. 

Earning at or below 30% of the federal poverty level or the area median income (whichever is greater) qualifies households as “low-income.” The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) offers support to low-income families through the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) program, which allocates roughly $10 billion annually to local and state agencies to assist with constructing or maintaining low-income housing. Although low-income buyers took out 21% of all new mortgages issued in 2023, three years prior, 23% of low-income buyers took out new mortgages, according to a Redfin analysis of the Home Mortgage Disclosure Act (HMDA).

Affordable housing for seniors

The population of homeless adults aged 65 and older grew sixfold from 2019 to 2021, according to data from the Joint Center for Housing Studies of Harvard University . From 2016 to 2021, the population of cost-burdened seniors — older adults who spent 30% or more of their income on housing alone — grew by 1.5 million to reach an all-time high of 11.2 million in 2021. With many seniors on fixed income and home prices rising, seniors can find themselves struggling to keep up.

Additional data from the Joint Center for Housing Studies of Harvard University reveals the following

• More than 5.6 million seniors are characterized as “severely cost-burdened” — meaning they spend 50% or more of their income on housing.
• Social Security, pensions and retirement funds comprise senior homeowners’ three primary income sources. 
• In 2022, the net wealth of older homeowners exceeded that of older renters nearly 50 times over. 
• The population of homeowners 80 years or older is expected to more than double by 2040, reaching nearly 17 million.

Seniors struggling to afford housing can take advantage of several government assistance programs, including the Housing Choice Voucher Program Section 8 and the Section 202 Supportive Housing for the Elderly Program . 

As accessibility and proximity to healthcare services become higher priorities, financial support addresses only one of the main challenges seniors face in finding adequate housing, according to HUD . 

Affordable housing for veterans

Homelessness increased by 12% in 2023, with a corresponding 7.4% increase in homelessness among U.S. veterans, according to data from HUD’s 2023 Annual Homelessness Assessment Report (AHAR) to Congress . The statistics below reveal the struggle many veterans face in finding affordable housing: 

• While veteran homelessness has decreased by 52% since 2010, per HUD data, the trend is reversing in the other direction with a 7.4% increase in 2023. 
• From 2022 to 2023, the population of homeless veterans increased by 2.6% among sheltered vets and 14.3% for unsheltered vets (those who live in an emergency shelter, transitional housing or a safe haven program), according to HUD data.
• Housed veterans who were diagnosed with cancer but lost their homes sometime after exhibit an 18% to 29% greater mortality risk than continuously housed vets, according to a February 2024 study by Health Affairs .

A handful of public assistance programs birthed by the pandemic waned after the official end of the Public Health Emergency in mid-May of 2023, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture Food and Nutrition Service . However, the VA stepped in to offer 46,552 veterans homes — 96% of them remained sheltered. The VA rehoused the 1,919 veterans who forsook their accommodations and continues to help these individuals find a home.

The VA home loan programs , the Grant and Per Diem Program and the Veterans Justice Outreach Program are some examples of programs offered to veterans looking for housing. Veteran Affairs is also dedicated to finding emergency housing for any veteran at risk for homelessness. 

Finding affordable housing

Multiple resources across federal, state and local levels can assist you in finding affordable housing. “Prospective homebuyers should consider looking in emerging neighborhoods, exploring government assistance programs and utilizing online tools like HUD’s housing counseling agencies ,” said Matthew Hurst , associate professor of finance and director of the Roland and Sarah George Investments Institute at Stetson University in DeLand, Florida.

Affordable housing resources

• Housing Choice Voucher Program Section 8   
• HUD Resource Locator
• Supportive Services for Veteran Families
• Non-Elderly Disabled (NED) Vouchers  
• LIHTC Database  
• HUD Local Public Housing Agency Directory  

If you’re renting, check out older properties or what we call ‘naturally occurring affordable housing’ as established properties are almost always more affordable than new housing. David Long

Prospective neighborhoods with affordable housing may not always coincide with the best cities for renters unless you know what to look for. “If you’re renting, check out older properties or what we call ‘naturally occurring affordable housing’ as established properties are almost always more affordable than new housing,” said David Long , president of the Texas State Affordable Housing Corporation. In addition, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development keeps a directory of local housing information categorized by state. Refer to your state of residence to stay up to date on news, resources and programs in your area. 

Frequently asked questions and expert insights

We asked experts to share their insights about affordable housing in America.

“Lack of supply. This imbalance drives up prices since there isn’t enough housing to meet the demand. This is the case at nearly all income levels. The supply crisis also affects core inflation, making it harder for the Federal Reserve to lower interest rates.”

“Housing affordability is increasingly an issue in America due to three critical reasons. First, there needs to be more public sector resources to expand housing opportunities for those most in need, particularly at the federal level. Second, reforms in land use and the development process are necessary to expand housing choice, counter exclusionary zoning and ensure the equitable dispersion of housing. Third, programs are needed to expand homeownership opportunities and to ensure that tenants are stabilized.”

“There has been a lack of funding at the local, state and federal levels of government to spur the creation of new affordable housing and to maintain the existing stock, resulting in greater demand and less stock.”

“Contact your local housing authority or call 2-11. It is also important for people to contact members of Congress who frequently have staff to help constituents address these challenges.”

“Prospective homebuyers should consider looking in emerging neighborhoods, exploring government assistance programs and utilizing online tools like HUD’s housing counseling agencies.”

“Homebuyers should first determine their affordability. Consulting a bank loan officer or mortgage broker is essential before house hunting. They should inquire about grants or programs for first-time buyers, as many states offer assistance. Additionally, they should pay attention to houses sold with assumable FHA loans for better interest rates.”

“The best way to advocate to ease America’s housing affordability crisis is to actively engage with officials at the local, state and federal levels. ”

“Start small with a local storefront poster campaign or host a meeting in a local bar, church or town hall highlighting unaffordable housing as an issue holding back your hometown. From there, you may find local businesses and groups and neighbors who will join your advocacy. There is power in numbers.”

“Housing affordability has declined in recent years due to rising home prices and increasing mortgage rates — the NAR’s Housing Affordability Index dropped from 148.2 in 2021 to 101.1 in March 2024. The future outlook suggests continued challenges as economic uncertainties and potential interest rate fluctuations may keep affordability constrained.”

“Research conducted each year by the National Low Income Housing Coalition consistently shows that there is no state or metro area in the U.S. where a worker earning the federal, state or local minimum wage can afford rent for a fair market two-bedroom home.”

“Housing affordability has worsened post-Covid due to rapidly rising mortgage interest rates. This trend is pushing people to seek more affordable areas, driving development and redevelopment opportunities in many affordable communities across the country, suggesting a shift in housing demand toward these regions in the future.”

“Many Gen Z and Millennials may find it difficult to afford a home in the next five years unless there is significant wage growth or a decrease in housing costs.”

“Yes, gradually. The increased inventory of existing homes for sale and new home construction should decrease the upward price pressure. One factor that can aid first-time buyers is a decrease in the average square footage of new homes, which will lower total construction costs and thus enable a lower entry price point.”

Editorial note: The name “Homefront” refers to the alliance between USA TODAY and Home Solutions that publishes review, comparison, and informational articles designed to help USA TODAY readers make smarter purchasing and investment decisions about their home. Under the alliance, Homefront provides and publishes research and articles about home service and home improvement topics.

Homefront has an affiliate disclosure policy . The opinions, analyses, reviews or recommendations expressed in this article are those of the Homefront editorial staff alone (see About Homefront ). Homefront adheres to strict editorial integrity standards. The information is believed to be accurate as of the publish date, but always check the provider’s website for the most current information.

Yelena Moroz Alpert is an editor for USA TODAY Homefront. She has written about home improvement and renovation projects as well as design trends for the Wall Street Journal, the New York Times, Architectural Digest and House Beautiful. Having moved almost a dozen times, Yelena knows a thing or two about packing and organizing. In her spare time, Yelena is experimenting with gardening and updating her 1938 Cleveland home. Follow her DIY adventures @designfix.cle .

Moving is more than packing boxes — it’s an exciting but complex journey involving serious financial decisions beyond hunting for bubble wrap and tape deals. New homeowners often budget for a top moving company and insurance but miss more nuanced financial implications, such as the burden of property taxes in their destination cities. High property…

The Zillow Observed Rent Index shows what any renter can already tell you: Signing a lease is more expensive than ever. Typical rent prices, defined in the Zillow index as changes in asking rents over time, increased by 35.7% from December 2018 to December 2023, far outpacing overall inflation. Rent prices increased by 3.3% between…

Between the cost of living increase and high mortgage rates, Americans are feeling the brunt of the economy. Whether you’re renting or buying a home, it pays to know the most affordable states. To determine which states are the most affordable, the research team at USA TODAY Homefront looked at the cost of living by…

Our editorial team is committed to creating independent and objective content focused on helping our readers make informed decisions. To help support these efforts we receive compensation from companies that advertise with us.

The compensation we receive from these companies may impact how and where products appear on this site. This compensation does not influence the recommendations or advice our editorial team provides within our content. We do not include all companies, products or offers that may be available.

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Mortgage rates continue their descent

Even as rates have dropped over the past few months, affordability constraints continue to hamper homebuyer activity

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Mortgage rates continue to move lower this week even as higher borrowing costs have kept activity subdued across many areas of the housing market.

According to data at HousingWire ’s Mortgage Rates Center , the average rate for 30-year conforming loans was at 7.01% on Tuesday, down 5 basis points from one week ago and 10 basis points lower than two weeks ago. The rate for 15-year conforming loans averaged 6.66% on Tuesday, compared to 6.79% a week ago.

HousingWire Lead Analyst Logan Mohtashami recently wrote that higher mortgage rates “have increased recession risk by targeting the one sector that always falls before every recession: residential construction workers. And higher rates are also impacting the future supply of homes, as housing permits have been in a downtrend for a while.“

Data from the U.S. Census Bureau and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) showed that housing starts shrank 4.4% year over year in June. But this pullback was led by the multifamily sector, where starts dropped 23.4% compared to June 2023. Single-family starts rose 4.4% during the year. Permits fell by 3.1% year over year, including a 1.3% decrease in single-family permits.

Housing completions also grew by 15.5% during the year, although the bulk of this was tied to multifamily (40.2% growth). There were a record number of apartments delivered in many markets last year, but builders appear to be pulling back to avoid a glut of supply.

Lower mortgage rates are having a positive impact on application levels, with the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) reporting last week that applications were up 3.9% on a yearly basis during the week of July 12. Most of this growth was tied to refinance applications, which were up 37% year over year.

Fannie Mae economists project two rate cuts by the end of 2024. In a report released Tuesday , the government-sponsored enterprise anticipated the Federal Reserve would cut benchmark rates in September and December, resulting in the average 30-year rate declining to 6.8% in 2024 and to 6.4% in 2025.

Fannie also upwardly revised its forecast for purchase mortgage origination volume to $1.22 trillion due to home price appreciation that is expected to finish 2024 higher than previously anticipated. Fannie reduced its forecast for refinance originations to $346 billion this year but expects $563 billion in refis next year. In total, Fannie is forecasting $2.11 trillion in origination volume in 2025, up from a projected $1.70 trillion this year.

Survey data released Tuesday by Bright MLS concluded that “affordability is increasingly becoming more of a challenge for potential homebuyers.“ The survey of 1,180 real estate agents across six Mid-Atlantic states and the District of Columbia found that 14% of sellers in June saw a contract fall through due to a buyer’s inability to secure financing, which was up from 11% in May.

The surveyed agents also noted that affordability was the No. 1 reason for a buyer pausing their home search efforts over the past six months, while high mortgage rates were the No. 2 reason. Each of these factors were cited by nearly 60% of respondents.

“With mortgage rates hovering around 7% and home prices continuing to rise, financing is a growing challenge for buyers, and this is beginning to impact a buyer’s ability to make it across the finish line,” Bright MLS chief economist Lisa Sturtevant said in a statement.

Good news, however, came in the form of less competition. In June, 38% of buyers successfully completed a purchase through Bright MLS while submitting only a single offer. That was up from 31.2% one year ago.

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Low-Income Housing Tax Credit Construction Costs: An Analysis of Prevailing Wages

Published On August 2, 2024

Since its founding, the Terner Center has conducted research to better understand the factors driving the costs of housing development , and has sought to identify policy solutions that can help to make housing more affordable. Our work on this topic includes research on the hard costs of construction , the costs and complexity of financing Low Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) developments, impact fees , and industrialized construction . Building on this body of research, in late 2023, we began a new project to deepen our understanding of how cost drivers for LIHTC properties were changing over time, with the goal of publishing that report at the beginning of 2025. The project focuses on all cost drivers for subsidized housing, including impact fees, land and labor costs, and funding fragmentation. Unlike our earlier work which was limited to analysis of developments funded by the 9% LIHTC program, we were interested in updating the analysis to consider 4% LIHTC developments, as well as how acquisition/rehab projects differ from new construction.

In this paper , we present an extract of this larger project, focusing on what we are learning about the relationship between prevailing wages and construction costs. California policymakers are currently negotiating the terms of Assembly Bill (AB) 3190 which would change what types of projects in California are required to pay prevailing wages. In order to help inform these policy conversations and because data on costs for LIHTC projects are not easily accessible, we are sharing results from our forthcoming analysis in advance of the full paper. Low-Income Housing Tax Credit Construction Costs: An Analysis of Prevailing Wages presents that analysis, and makes it publicly available. The research methodology does not specifically adhere to the legislative parameters outlined in AB 3190.

As we have consistently emphasized in prior work, opting to pay prevailing wages is a policy choice with public advantages. However, prevailing wages are also associated with higher construction costs. If policymakers want to ensure the continued production of subsidized housing, either additional financial resources will need to be made available, cost-containment measures must be implemented, or a combination of both should be pursued.

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This Is How Much the Average American Home Costs by State

Published on July 23, 2024

By: Kristi Waterworth

• The median home price in America is $420,800, as of Q1 2024 -- but prices vary wildly from state to state.
• By understanding your own market, you can be better prepared for your real estate experience.
• You can even use this data to strategize a move from a higher-priced area to a less-expensive one for retirement.

I spent a decade of my life selling homes in my community as a Realtor, and I can tell you, there's nothing that makes buying or selling a house easier than really being armed with knowledge.

You can't know everything -- that's why you have an agent -- but the more prepared you are going into your purchase or sale, the fewer surprises that will await you. Read on for some helpful information about home prices in all 50 states.

The average American home cost by state

The prices in the table below are based on data from the Zillow Home Value Index (ZHVI). The ZHVI reflects the typical value for a home between the 35th and 65th percentile for an area, making it a fairly realistic gauge of value for the typical buyer in an area. Choosing to look at this slice of data means you eliminate deeply distressed properties, as well as high-end luxury mansions where the last thing you're worried about is mortgage rates .

I've also included the change in price since 2021, so you can see how much equity you may currently have, based on your state's average.

Hawaii has the highest property values, where West Virginia has the lowest. The median sales price of homes sold in America was $420,800 in Q1 2024, according to the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis. So both Hawaii and West Virginia are very far off the median, which may also influence where you shop for a home or how you plan for your retirement.

Choosing a home in any state

While it's important to understand property values where you live and where you're shopping for a home, this information can be used to plan for the future. For example, if you currently live in Virginia, you may find it's worth choosing your next home in West Virginia when you're attempting to downsize.

Your life may not change much, depending on where you are in each state, but selling a home in a more expensive location and buying one in a less costly one is one part of a killer retirement strategy.

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Kristi Waterworth is a financial journalist located in the Missouri Ozarks. When she’s not writing about real estate or personal finance, she’s committing shenanigans with her four dogs.

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One small step for apartment-kind

The foolproof fix for America's housing crisis: fewer stairs.

"Are you familiar with the Texas doughnut?" Chris Gannon, an Austin architect, asked me recently. The question wasn't about confections. He was riffing on apartment construction, explaining why America can't seem to get behind the kinds of buildings that he and other pro-housing advocates want to see.

The "Texas doughnut" is shorthand for a large apartment building, often spanning an entire city block, where a ring of street-facing units conceals a parking garage in the middle. In growing cities across the US, doughnuts are everywhere. In Gannon's eyes, they're clumsy solutions to our housing woes: The imposing structures offer little outdoor space and require a lot of precious land. It's much harder to find smaller apartment or condo buildings, the kind that might fit snugly between a single-family home and a local restaurant. Cities are full of these little parcels, but "missing middle" housing — bigger than a single-family home but much smaller than the popular doughnut — just isn't getting built. This reality is especially frustrating for pro-development yes-in-my-backyard activists who have spent years rewriting laws in hopes of encouraging denser, more-diverse housing — some baby carrots to go with all those doughnuts.

In their quest to build more and bring down costs, YIMBYs have identified one overlooked hang-up: stairs. Yes, the humble stairwell is an unlikely but powerful foe. More specifically, they're taking aim at a widespread rule that requires almost every new apartment building in the US to include at least two separate stairwells. This part of local codes, they say, is an outdated safety measure that really just makes apartment units smaller, more expensive, and darker (yes, darker).

When developers are forced to devote more square footage to stairs, that means less space for living rooms or bedrooms. Entire units might end up on the cutting-room floor. In many cases, the wasted square footage is enough to hamstring the builder's profit and sink a project. Instead of getting much-needed housing, we get none. Tweaking building codes wouldn't mean sacrificing safety in the name of efficiency. In a moderately sized apartment building of five or six stories, advocates argue, a single stairwell, combined with the latest fire-stopping materials, sprinkler systems, and limits on the number of units, is more than enough to ensure safety. In fact, moving to this type of layout would bring American apartments in line with European and Asian countries that have allowed this kind of development for decades. When Gannon learned of the single-stair movement a few years ago, he said, everything clicked.

"I was like, 'Oh, my god,'" Gannon told me. "A light went on, like, 'Oh, this is why apartments in the States suck.'"

Only a few US cities, most notably Seattle and New York City, allow single-stair buildings to stretch up to six stories — pretty much everywhere else in America caps it at three. But the single-stair movement is gathering steam in places like Austin, where the City Council recently directed city planners to look into updating the building code, as well as entire states like California and Minnesota. Embracing the single stair could enable apartment buildings to squeeze into vacant lots that might otherwise have turned into single-family houses or sat undeveloped. It would also make it easier to build larger units for families, who are mostly ignored in the apartment market. More apartments and condos would mean lower costs for everyone.

That's the goal, anyway. These are stairs we're talking about, not a silver bullet for the housing crisis. But this obscure part of the building code wields huge influence when it comes to how our buildings look and feel and whether they even get built. Every new apartment building needs stairs, sure. But maybe we could do with a lot fewer of them.

Stairs are a relatively new obsession in YIMBYland. For years, crusaders against the housing shortage focused on dismantling an unholy mess of local zoning rules that prohibited anything but single-family homes and fought against " minimum lot sizes ," which encouraged sprawl rather than density. Pro-development advocates scored significant victories — several states, including Washington and Oregon, have basically gotten rid of single-family zoning altogether. While it's one thing to change the law of the land, the thornier question was how to get developers to actually build on it.

"You can raise the floor-area ratios, raise the height limits, lot coverage, whatever," Stephen Smith, a building-code researcher and single-stair advocate who founded the Center for Building in North America, told me. "But you're still not going to get that, like, beautiful 1970s Italian apartment that you stayed in an Airbnb once. Buildings are just not like that in America."

That's where things like stairs come in. Say you're a developer with a small piece of land in a quaint neighborhood. It's already the stuff of YIMBY dreams: The streets are lined with a blend of single-family homes and low-slung apartment buildings. Walk down the block , and you'll find restaurants and a grocery store. It's a 20-minute bike ride from downtown . The dream would be to take this land and build it up, turning the vacant parcel into a condo or apartment building where more people could enjoy this breezy lifestyle. But your lot is small — only 3,000 square feet, or about one-third of the typical lot size for a new single-family home. From a pure profit perspective, the project makes sense only if you can squeeze in enough units to get a good return on investment, which means building higher than three stories. According to the building code, however, you'd have to include two stairwells at opposite ends of the building, with a corridor running between them. This eats up so much square footage that the project goes poof — the areas of each floor simply can't accommodate the necessary units.

A light went on, like, 'Oh, this is why apartments in the States suck.'

The Texas doughnut is a product of these limitations. Instead of building on small lots, developers are pretty much forced to assemble large parcels of land to accommodate the two-stair requirements. The apartment units in these buildings usually run on either side of the corridor that connects the two stairwells, which means the typical unit gets natural light from only one direction. A single-stair setup might allow units to cut across the building and take in light from both sides. Given more space to work with, developers could also get more creative with their floor plans or build bigger units with more bedrooms. In an op-ed last year, Michael Eliason, a Seattle architect regarded as a leading voice in the single-stair movement, described the huge ripple effects these reforms could have.

"The more I researched, the more I realized this one issue was like the Higgs boson of housing," Eliason wrote. "It connects everything."

He's among those eager to spread the gospel of Seattle. The city allows single-stair buildings up to six stories, which opens up a world of possibilities. There are guardrails, of course: Under Seattle's code, single-stair buildings can't have more than four units per floor, and there are requirements for fire safety like an updated sprinkler system plus fire-resistant materials. These are all sensible precautions. In return, you get something like 1310 East Union Condominiums, which was built on less than 3,000 square feet in Seattle's Capitol Hill neighborhood. It has eight loft-style units spread across six stories, with commercial space on the ground floor and eight parking spaces. A stairwell and elevator run down the middle.

Small projects like this one are tough to execute even with one stairwell. Brian Court, a partner at the architecture firm the Miller Hull Partnership and one of the designers of 1310 East Union, said a second staircase — something like 200 extra square feet per floor — would have made the development financially unfeasible.

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"We're not trying to make buildings riskier," Court told me. "But we definitely need to do whatever we can and think creatively about ways to get more housing online sooner rather than later."

Sean Jursnick, a Denver architect and single-stair advocate, made a pilgrimage to Seattle last year to meet with Eliason and tour buildings like 1310 East Union. City planners there sometimes call these single-stair buildings "Seattle Specials" — they simply wouldn't be possible in pretty much any other city. Jursnick found more than 100 such developments in Seattle. The city, he told me, "felt like a good example of what the rest of the country could unlock with a simple code change."

Seattle may be an outlier in the US, but it's pretty normal — tame even — compared with the rest of the developed world. Almost all of Europe, as well as Asia, Mexico and South America, allows single-stair buildings of six stories or higher. Germany allows single-stair buildings to stretch to about 20 stories, while Switzerland has no such limit.

To achieve their agenda, single-stair evangelists will have to get past one huge hypothetical: fires. It's hard to persuade fire experts and city-council members to loosen up the status quo — Americans are so used to two (or more) stairwells that anything less may seem like an unnecessary risk, even reckless. But Seattle's code offers a model that, by all accounts, balances safety with the very real need for more midrise housing on smaller lots. Sprinklers, fire-retardant materials, and systems that ensure the stairway isn't filled with smoke in the event of a fire have allowed Seattle to permit this kind of single-stair development for decades without major incident. There isn't much data on how single-stair buildings, specifically, have performed against fires across the world, partially because fires are relatively rare these days. But even the National Fire Protection Association, which has argued for a limit of four stories for single-stair residential buildings, recently reported that sprinklers had proved reliable in large fires, reducing death rates by 90% compared with buildings without them.

The more I researched, the more I realized this one issue was like the Higgs boson of housing. It connects everything.

While these smaller buildings tend to be more expensive and often operate as condos rather than rentals, more housing is more housing. They could play a crucial role as cities chart their next phases of growth.

The Seattle model has already spread to Honolulu, and advocates around the country are making progress: Lawmakers in at least 10 states, including California, Oregon, and Washington, have either considered or passed legislation that could result in updated state building codes. In the meantime, Gannon told me, individual cities could adopt similar standards: "This could be something that could come in and really help us figure out how we urbanize."

The housing crisis demands creative solutions, but even mundane and seemingly small fixes can put a sizable dent in the country's massive housing deficit . We have plenty of real-life models for single-stair development, both here in the US and abroad. It's time to take the next step.

James Rodriguez is a senior reporter on Business Insider's Discourse team.

About Discourse Stories

Through our Discourse journalism, Business Insider seeks to explore and illuminate the day’s most fascinating issues and ideas. Our writers provide thought-provoking perspectives, informed by analysis, reporting, and expertise. Read more Discourse stories here .

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• How Vladimir Putin created a housing bubble

Prices have risen by 172% in Russia’s biggest cities over the past three years

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M ortgages used to be a tough sell in Russia. Decades of Soviet propaganda, which denounced credit as an unbearable burden, had an effect. Even after the end of communism, Russians still referred to mortgages as “debt slavery”, preferring to save until they could buy their homes outright. Vladimir Putin, the country’s president, has spent two decades trying to convince his citizens to take a different view. In 2003, during his first term, he explained that mortgages might help solve “the acute problem of housing” facing Russians. His plea fell on deaf ears.

He is now having more success—and all it took was a heavy dose of statism, as well as the invasion of a peaceful neighbour. Over the past few years, the number of Russians taking out mortgages has soared, owing to a generous programme of state subsidies for buyers of new-builds. Mr Putin may have got more than he bargained for, however, since the state’s subsidy binge has stoked an ultra-hot property market, sending house prices soaring. As such, the Kremlin has found itself picking up a giant and fast-growing bill.

In 2020, when Russia was gripped by covid-19, officials increased handouts for those buying freshly constructed properties in an attempt to bolster the economy. At first, banks offered mortgage applicants a preferential rate of around 6%, roughly two percentage points below the market rate, with the state making up the difference. Similar discounts, which had previously only been available to families, were then offered to IT workers and people moving to places including the Arctic, Siberia and occupied Ukraine. Still, mortgage volumes did not begin to really rise until Russia’s economy went on a war footing. Banks issued mortgages worth 7.7trn roubles ($88bn, or 4% of GDP ) last year, up from a total of 4.3trn in 2020. Most were supported by subsidies.

This reflects the fact that Russians are short of investment opportunities: sanctions weigh on the stockmarket and currency controls make it hard to move money abroad. Inflation, which came roaring back in mid-2023 , has also played a role—and not just by giving Russians an incentive to put money into bricks and mortar. When the Central Bank of Russia ( CBR ) started raising interest rates, the scheme’s appeal grew. As the CBR lifted its benchmark rate to 16%, the government kept its preferential rate low, raising it to just 8%. In June there was a gap of more than ten percentage points between the government’s rate and the market rate for a mortgage.

As a consequence, the Kremlin is footing a hefty bill. The finance ministry has already spent nearly half a trillion roubles on the scheme. Costs could soon climb higher if, as most analysts expect, the CBR raises rates to 18% on July 26th. The boom in subsidised loans has also caused a housing bubble. Last year 110m square metres of housing were built, compared with an average of just 59m a year since the end of communism. At the same time, prices are soaring. The Moscow-based Institute for Urban Economics reckons they climbed by 172% in the biggest cities between 2020 and 2023. Elvira Nabiullina, the CBR ’s governor, is spooked. She has blamed the government’s subsidies for “overheating” the housing market and said that they would pose a “pro-inflationary risk” if the Kremlin failed to wind them down.

Under pressure from the CBR and the finance ministry, the Kremlin has begun to do just that. In December it hiked the minimum deposit required for a loan from 20% to 30%. Earlier this month it ended its most popular scheme, which was for buyers of new-builds. The number of new mortgages could drop by some 50% in the second half of the year, according to one analyst quoted by state-affiliated media.

Russia’s construction industry will suffer. So will banks, which have enjoyed record profits driven by rapid growth in mortgage portfolios. For now, though, the housing market may manage to avoid a collapse. Vasily Astrov of the Vienna Institute for International Economic Studies says “deceleration and possibly stagnation” are likelier than a big drop in prices. Russia’s red-hot war economy, which has seen bumper wage growth this year, may yet prove able to sustain a robust property market even in the face of higher rates and slimmed-down state support. The economy has defied doubters so far . And Russians seem willing to bet the house on it. ■

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This article appeared in the Finance & economics section of the print edition under the headline “War and prices”

Finance & economics July 27th 2024

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