Next Fed Chair to Shape Interest Rates at Critical Moment for Housing

The president’s nominee for the next Chair of the Federal Reserve will play a critical – if indirect – role in  housing affordability through the end of this decade and maybe beyond. Over the next four years, the Fed Chair will likely oversee a historic increase in interest rates, pushing them to levels not seen in years, which will increase how much Americans pay to borrow money to buy a home. A decade after the financial crisis, mortgage interest rates remain near historic lows, contributing to a booming housing market – particularly in the parts of the country with the strongest local labor markets. If and when rates rise alongside housing costs, and assuming income growth fails to keep pace, buyers on already-stretched budgets could find it marginally more difficult to afford a home – especially in a handful of pricey coastal markets. While the Fed Chair’s is a powerful voice, presumptive nominee Jerome Powell’s would be one of nine on the committee that sets short-term interest rates, and there are other vacancies on the committee yet to be filled. These other votes will also help shape the path of interest rates ahead.