We have over 10 million vacant housing units in America. There is no shortage as NAR and NAHB like to promote - follow the money. The amount of money spent on housing is up to the individual. No one forces them to get a mortgage that is too high. Simply buy a cheaper house!!!!! That was a decision I had to make numerous times in my life. What you qualify for is about 2x what you really can afford. Lenders just love to lend - follow the money. Apartment vacancies nationwide almost doubled in past 3-4 years. If we had a shortage of housing, there would be waiting lists for apartment projects and no vacancies!!!! Houses in my area that once sold in days now sit for sale for 6+ months. No demand for housing. Also, the current demand for new houses is literally 1/4th of what it was in the 1980s when Boomers were taking off. No one adjusts for the fact that population growth is now below 1% and has been declining this entire century. Lastly, owning a house is the second worst investment you can make - only buying vehicles that depreciate is worse. No one ever deducts the costs for utilities, maintenance, taxes, interest (almost 100% loss of your money nowadays), et al. Adjusted for inflation and with actual expenses deducted you lose a ton of money owning a house. The propaganda will not go away because of NAR and NAHB controlling the narrative. But, reality will always rule and lenders and realtors are getting killed right now because there is an oversupply of houses with very little demand. The money people are hurting and need to step up the lies to get to making their bonuses again:)
The number of housing units that are vacant may be even higher, but only a small number may actually be for sale or long term rent. It's estimated that current housing stock is about 4M+ short of demand, with roughly 1.5M new household formations each year adding to demand. The amount of money that people must pay for housing is largely a function of where they live. And, where people live is frequently dictated by where they work. There are clearly markets in the US with lower cost housing, but few of them are in large urban areas where more high paying jobs are often located. In my area, housing (ANY housing) currently sells for about $1,000/ft. and rentals run $3-4K/mo. When Boomers began buying in the mid-70's, relative housing prices were much cheaper than today, which made the break even between buying and renting tilt heavily in favor of buying. Today, the calculus of whether to buy requires a longer period of ownership, but for many, the justification remains the same: 1) to have a permanent home, and 2) a view that home ownership is a form of enforced long term savings. I agree that the NAR, etc., are selling sunshine, but that's what they have always done. For young people today, the affordability index is depressing and is not likely to improve without either: 1) a major recession, or 2) a federally backed building program that includes some financial aid for qualified buyers.
We have over 10 million vacant housing units in America. There is no shortage as NAR and NAHB like to promote - follow the money. The amount of money spent on housing is up to the individual. No one forces them to get a mortgage that is too high. Simply buy a cheaper house!!!!! That was a decision I had to make numerous times in my life. What you qualify for is about 2x what you really can afford. Lenders just love to lend - follow the money. Apartment vacancies nationwide almost doubled in past 3-4 years. If we had a shortage of housing, there would be waiting lists for apartment projects and no vacancies!!!! Houses in my area that once sold in days now sit for sale for 6+ months. No demand for housing. Also, the current demand for new houses is literally 1/4th of what it was in the 1980s when Boomers were taking off. No one adjusts for the fact that population growth is now below 1% and has been declining this entire century. Lastly, owning a house is the second worst investment you can make - only buying vehicles that depreciate is worse. No one ever deducts the costs for utilities, maintenance, taxes, interest (almost 100% loss of your money nowadays), et al. Adjusted for inflation and with actual expenses deducted you lose a ton of money owning a house. The propaganda will not go away because of NAR and NAHB controlling the narrative. But, reality will always rule and lenders and realtors are getting killed right now because there is an oversupply of houses with very little demand. The money people are hurting and need to step up the lies to get to making their bonuses again:)
The number of housing units that are vacant may be even higher, but only a small number may actually be for sale or long term rent. It's estimated that current housing stock is about 4M+ short of demand, with roughly 1.5M new household formations each year adding to demand. The amount of money that people must pay for housing is largely a function of where they live. And, where people live is frequently dictated by where they work. There are clearly markets in the US with lower cost housing, but few of them are in large urban areas where more high paying jobs are often located. In my area, housing (ANY housing) currently sells for about $1,000/ft. and rentals run $3-4K/mo. When Boomers began buying in the mid-70's, relative housing prices were much cheaper than today, which made the break even between buying and renting tilt heavily in favor of buying. Today, the calculus of whether to buy requires a longer period of ownership, but for many, the justification remains the same: 1) to have a permanent home, and 2) a view that home ownership is a form of enforced long term savings. I agree that the NAR, etc., are selling sunshine, but that's what they have always done. For young people today, the affordability index is depressing and is not likely to improve without either: 1) a major recession, or 2) a federally backed building program that includes some financial aid for qualified buyers.