Homes have never been more affordable...

For individual home buyers, there are only a few facts that really matter:

•

Can I afford this home?

•

Is it a good investment?

•

So it’s a bit surprising that the most important housing

statistic has gone largely unreported:

been more affordable

median mortgage payment on the current medianpriced

home ($182,400) as a percentage of the median

household income ($64,400), is lower than it’s been in

a generation. The chart below, which tracks housing

affordability for the past 10 years, shows incredible

improvements in affordability since the height of the

real estate boom in 2006.

Does it meet my family’s needs?homes have never. Affordability, measured by the

1.

Median mortgage payment as a percentage of median household income

“Home buyers over the past

year got a great deal, and

buyers for the balance of this

year have an edge over sellers.

Affordability could reach a

generational high in the second

half of this year because of

rock-bottom mortgage interest

rates, helped partly by the Fed’s

very accommodative monetary

policy.”

-Lawrence Yun, Chief Economist

The National Association of REALTORS®