From 2020 to 2024, sales of lower-priced new homes declined significantly as the market moved toward higher-priced segments. Rising construction costs—driven by inflation, supply chain disruptions, and labor shortages—as well as higher regulatory costs, made it increasingly difficult for builders to construct affordable homes. On the other hand, low levels of inventory pushed up the…
Despite solid income gains and lower home prices, Americans still continue to face major housing affordability challenges, according to the latest data from the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB)/Wells Fargo Cost of Housing Index (CHI). The CHI results from the first quarter of 2025 show that a family earning the nation’s median income of…
In another sign of America’s ongoing housing affordability crisis, the National Association of Home Builders /Wells Fargo Cost of Housing Index (CHI) found that in the third quarter of 2024, a family earning the nation’s median income of $97,800 needed 38% of their income to cover the mortgage payment on a median-priced new home. Low-income…
While the lack of affordable housing dominates the headlines across the nation, congressional districts with higher shares of renter households are disproportionately affected by the current affordability crisis. Geographically, the districts with the largest housing cost burdens are heavily concentrated in California, Florida, and the coastal Northeast. Buoyed by significant home equity gains and locked…
