Source: Banker & Tradesman —
Wits’ End would make an appropriate name for a new subdivision in today’s wild housing market. While there’s not yet such a place on the map, many would-be buyers are quickly running out of patience.
Their frustration is not necessarily due to high loan rates, but rather the fact that house prices have outpaced inflation by a whopping 150 percent over the last 50-odd years, according to researchers at Anytime Estimate, a division of the Clever Real Estate buyer-agent matching service.
If prices had increased at the same rate as inflation since 1970, the median home price nationally would be just $177,788. That’s less than half the actual median of $408,100. Put another way, since 1970, inflation has increased 644 percent. House prices, on the other hand, are up 1608 percent.
Speaking of inflation, it likely plays a role in financially strapped homeowners asking lenders to forbear or adjust their monthly payments. But there is some good news on that front.
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