Housing Affordability in Q2 of 2022 Falls to Its Lowest Level Since the Great Recession

According to the latest National Association of Home Builders (NAHB)/Wells Fargo Housing Opportunity Index (HOI) for Q2 of 2022, increasing mortgage rates, high inflation, low existing inventory, and rising home prices all caused housing affordability to fall to its lowest level since the Great Recession.

The HOI is reporting that new and exiting homes sold between April 1st and June 30th were affordable to just 42.8% of families earning the US median income of $90,000. In Q1 of 2022, that percentage was 56.9% for median-income earners.

The HOI notes that the national median home price jumped to an all-time high of $390,000 in Q2 of 2022, surpassing the previous record-high of $365,000 set in Q1 of 2022. Meanwhile, the average mortgage rates soared from 3.86% in Q1 to 5.33% in Q2.


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