Caden Parham REI

During the housing boom of 2004-2006, lenders were comfortable taking on high levels of risk, making it easy to qualify for a loan. The Housing Credit Availabil...ity Index (HCAI), which measures the percentage of owner-occupied home purchase loans that are likely to default, indicates that lenders are currently unwilling to tolerate defaults and are imposing tighter lending standards. In short, while interest rates are at record lows, it's much tougher to qualify for a loan today than it was during the housing bubble. In addition, prices aren't soaring out of control. While current appreciation is higher than the historic norm, it's nowhere near the rise in prices that led up to the crash and isn't continuing to accelerate out of control. The affordability formula has three factors: mortgage rates, home prices, and lastly, wages earned by purchasers. Fifteen years ago, mortgage rates were over 6%, home prices were high, and wages were low. Today, mortgage rates are only about 3%, and while home prices are still high, wages have also increased, meaning homeowners will pay less of their monthly income toward their mortgage payment today than they did back then.

With the market as hot as it is right now, it's hard to think that you can do much more to increase demand. But believe it or not, there are certain trends that... are positively affecting both purchase price and days on market. #themoreyouknow . For more real estate tips, visit newwestern.com/blog/ See more

The survey asked nearly 5,000 people the following question: Which of the following investments do you think will do best in 2021? This survey provides vital a...nd compelling analysis into which assets investors have the most confidence in, now that we’re in the throes of the COVID-19 pandemic, stated John Karr, COO of Sophisticated Investor. See more