A median-priced home was 79% less affordable historically in 1Q 2022, says Attom. But even in Miami, homes are still 50% more affordable than they were in 2006.
WASHINGTON – Attom’s first-quarter 2022 U.S. Home Affordability Report finds that higher mortgage rates compound an on-going home affordability crisis in some regions of the country.
According to Attom, a median-priced home was less affordable than historical averages in 79% of U.S. counties in the first quarter of 2022, versus 38% of counties historically less affordable during the previous first quarter, in large part because mortgage rates rose close to 5% during the first quarter of this year, reducing affordability.
The median national home price rose 16% in 1Q 200 from the first quarter of 2021 and reached a record high of $320,000, while average wages only gained 7%.
Still, homes generally remain more affordable than they were during the peak of the Great Recession. A separate study from real estate settlement and risk solutions provider First American Financial Corporation found that housing is more affordable compared to 2006.
Analysts determined that nationally, homes are 34% more affordable today than in April 2006 on average.
Washington, D.C., and Baltimore, Maryland, are 53% more affordable now than in April 2006, while Chicago (50%), Miami (50%) and Riverside, California (48%) are also doing better than their Great Recession peak.
Source: Washington Post (05/11/22) Lerner, Michele
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