U.S. Homeownership Inches Higher: Start of a Trend?
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What is the main topic discussed in this episode?
This is Your Money Matters from The Wall Street Journal. Welcome to Your Money Matters. I'm J.R. Whalen with Anne-Marie Fertoli in New York. Homeownership is slightly up in the U.S. The current rate is 63.9 percent. And while it's a small climb, it's the highest level since 2014 and could be indicative of a long-term trend. Wall Street Journal reporter Laura Casisto joins us to talk about the current housing trends.
Laura, let's talk about the economic factors that are at play here. We've seen recent reports on consumer confidence and spending that are up. What else is making it a healthy market for homebuyers?
So one of the critical factors that we've been waiting for has been wage growth. That is a huge determining factor in whether or not people can afford to buy homes. And in particular, we're seeing wage growth among that younger segment. And it's those people who are in their early 30s.
What recent change occurred in the U.S. homeownership rate and why does it matter?
They really start to drive the homeownership rate up when they transition from renting to owning homes. And the second factor that we're seeing is mortgage rates staying low. And so we have this kind of perfect storm of strong wage growth and a strong economy, but interest rates remaining low. So as long as that stays true, that's a perfect breeding ground for homeownership.
The numbers about the younger buyers particularly was interesting to me. As someone who's been renting in Brooklyn for five years, potentially looking to buy, it almost seems like it's not really an option in large metropolitan areas like New York City and Chicago, for example. So how is that playing out in metropolitan areas versus other parts of the country?
Yeah, so the way the census data breaks it down is by region, which is not perfect, but it gives us a sense. And so what we're seeing is the homeownership rate rising in the Midwest, where homes are much more affordable, a lot more people live in suburbs, and we're seeing the homeownership rate flat in the Northeast, the West, and the South. So to me, that is a worrisome indicator. That suggests that these areas where the economy is the strongest, but home prices are rising the fastest, that those home prices are still acting as a barrier to homeownership for people.
Now, Laura, you also note in your story that buyers aren't being entirely deterred by the difficulty of finding an affordable place to live. Is that a significant factor?
Yeah. So I think that's what we're seeing is that really for the last couple of years until recently, the home ownership rate was essentially in free fall. We really didn't know when it was going to stop going down. It seemed like every quarter we thought it was going to hit bottom and then it went down some more. And we're seeing a reversal of that. But we're not really seeing a reversal of the trends that were driving the homeownership rate down. We're still seeing home prices rising. Home prices rose by 6.1%, which is also the fastest rate in three years this last month. And so that suggests to me that it's more just sort of a determination. People see that interest rates are probably going to rise.
People feel pretty confident. And so they're just diving in.
How are wage growth and mortgage rates combining to influence first-time buyers?
But whether or not that's sustainable is a big question.
And we got word this week that wages are up 0.3% in the third quarter. So you mentioned wages earlier as being sort of a catalyst toward putting some fire into the homeowner marketplace. So I guess that's a good sign.
Yeah, absolutely. I mean, that was a big issue before was that the unemployment rate was low. And that's a factor in homeownership. But a bigger factor is what can people afford? Can they afford that monthly payment? And for a while, we just didn't see people having a lot of confidence. And as Anne-Marie raised, too, we saw rents going up much faster than people's wages. So they also just weren't saving money. So they weren't saving for that down payment.
We'll talk a little bit more about what that means for people looking to rent versus those looking to buy. We're speaking with The Wall Street Journal's Laura Cusisto about rising homeownership rates in the U.S., and you're listening to Your Money Matters from The Wall Street Journal.
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Chapters
5 chapters
1
What is the main topic discussed in this episode?
0:02–0:55
2
What recent change occurred in the U.S. homeownership rate and why does it matter?
0:55–2:51
3
How are wage growth and mortgage rates combining to influence first-time buyers?
2:51–6:06
4
How does the homeownership trend differ across regions and big cities?
6:06–8:55
5
Why are some buyers undeterred by rising home prices and affordability challenges?
8:55–9:07
Speakers
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