Affordability

Spooky Season is Here to Stay: Mortgage Affordability May Never Recover

Housing affordability has become the highest barrier for both buyers and sellers in today’s housing market. Throughout the pandemic, as prices were rising to never-before-seen heights and inventory plummeted to their lowest level in at least 40 years, low mortgage rates helped keep monthly payments affordable for most home buyers who could afford a down payment. But now that rates are soaring, that monthly payment is climbing out of reach for many.

Nicole Bachaud • Oct 20 2022

Demand for Lowest-Priced Homes is Strongest as Market Rebalances

Inventory, sales and price cut trends show home buyer demand has cooled across the board, but competition is strongest for the lowest-priced homes in each market, reversing a pandemic trend.

Nicole Bachaud • Aug 16 2022

Skyrocketing Home Values Out-earn Salaries

While homeowners watched their assets multiply in 2021, the chasm separating many renters from homeownership widened, as home prices skyrocketed and rising rents eroded their ability to save for a down payment.

Zillow Research • Mar 18 2022

A 1-2 Punch: Why Monthly Mortgage Payments are Rising at their Fastest Pace in Decades

The monthly mortgage payment on the typical U.S. home rose 31% in the last year – the largest one-year climb in at least 22 years.

Jeff Tucker • Feb 23 2022

Bottom Tier in Top Gear: Why the Most Affordable Homes are Gaining Value the Fastest

In many areas, the gap in appreciation between the most- and least-affordable homes is widening -- evidence of intense competition among buyers on a budget.

Arpita Chakravorty • Mar 31 2021

10 Already-Affordable Markets That Have Only Gotten More Affordable the Past 2 Years

If you’re looking for an affordable place to set down roots, it might be best to start your search in the South.

Zillow Research • Jan 29 2021

Record Low Mortgage Rates Boost Affordability, But Mask Down Payment Difficulties

Ultra-low mortgage interest rates are keeping monthly payments remarkably affordable, but don't ease the burden of saving for a down payment as prices rise.

Zillow Research • Oct 29 2020

Military Veterans, Some Active-Duty Households Enjoy a Housing Affordability Edge

Active-duty military households spend 24.9% of their incomes on market rent, while veteran households spend 20.1% – significantly less than the 29.6% of income that the typical U.S. household pays for rent in 2019. Service members and veterans also pay a lower share of their incomes on mortgages: 13.4% and 10.9%, respectively, compared with 16% for all U.S. households.

Joshua Clark • Nov 06 2019

36 Major Metros Where High School Grads Can Afford a Home (Q1 2019 Affordability)

Despite home values climbing for years, the median home in 36 of the country’s 50 largest metro areas is theoretically affordable to households that earn the typical income associated with attaining only a high school diploma.

Manny Garcia • Jul 09 2019

California Home Prices Are So High, Even High-Income Households Can’t Keep Up

The cost of housing in most major California metros has risen so high that the median household cannot reasonably afford a median-priced house, even with a 20 percent down payment.

Treh Manhertz • Mar 28 2019