Affordability

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development announced a 12% increase in Fair Market Rents across the U.S., in addition to making $113 million available in Housing Choice Vouchers to public housing agencies to help families meet rising housing costs.

HUD issues more than $24 million in resources to assist organizations with funding to fight housing discrimination and help build fair and inclusive communities nationwide.

Research from the Harvard Joint Center for Housing Studies suggests that local governments can contribute to assistance in funding home improvements as part of the response to the nationwide housing shortage. 

In a new study, RentCafe considered more than 20 metrics, as researchers name the U.S. metros that are a great fit for Americans who lease while raising children.

In August, active inventory shrank compared to last year (-7.9%), despite an unusual increase from July in newly listed homes, signaling a potential return of seller activity heading into fall.

While overall U.S. mortgage performance remained strong in June, Molly Boesel, Principal Economist for CoreLogic, notes that the impact from recent weather disasters will likely see impacted regions increase in the months to come.

ATTOM's latest Residential Property Mortgage Origination Report showed purchase lending led the way in Q2, spiking nearly 30%, while overall refinance and home equity activity also rose after eight straight quarterly declines.

Separating where someone lives from where that person works could open up access to affordable housing that only requires an internet connection, not a commute.

A new report from the National Association of Realtors revealed contract signings rose in July, as pending home sales also increased for the second month in a row, according to NAR's latest Pending Home Sales Index.

The newest S&P Dow Jones Indices (S&P DJI) S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller Indices, which is the one of the most highly regarded measures of U.S. home prices, for June 2023 has revealed that all of the top-20 markets reported monthly price increases, the fourth such consecutive month of rising prices.