White people took out 62% of new mortgages last year, down from 64% in 2022 and 70% in 2018. Meanwhile, the share taken out by Hispanic, Black and Asian buyers ticked up. People of color are taking out a rising share of mortgages because an increasing share of them are of prime homebuying age, and because America is becoming more diverse. Hispanic, Black and Asian people have also seen larger income gains than white people in recent years. The share of U.S. mortgages taken out by white homebuyers has declined over the last five years, while the share taken out by Hispanic, Black and Asian homebuyers has ticked up. That’s according to a Redfin analysis of 2018-2023 Home Mortgage Disclosure Act (HMDA) data covering mortgage originations for primary homes. This analysis does not cover originations for investment properties or second homes. Just under two-thirds (62.2%) of new mortgages issued in …
70% of Florida Homeowners Have Seen Rise in Insurance Costs or Changes in Coverage: Survey
12% of Florida respondents who have faced insurance changes have been dropped by their insurance company—an increasingly common trend as insurers back out of flood-prone areas. The share is almost as high in fire-prone California. Nationwide, one-third of homeowners who lost insurance have moved or plan to move, but nearly the same share are staying in their home with little or no coverage. Only about one-third of U.S. homeowners know which natural disasters their insurance covers. 34% of real estate agents in the U.S.—and 73% in Florida—have seen an increase in insurance-related issues in the past year. Nearly three-quarters (70.3%) of Florida homeowners and over half (51%) of California homeowners say they or the area they live in has been affected by rising home insurance costs or changes in coverage (e.g., their insurer dropped them) in the past year. That compares with less than half (44.6%) of homeowners nationwide. That’s …
Over One-Quarter of Recent Homebuyers Have No Idea How Much Their Agent Was Paid: Survey
Nearly 20% of recent buyers have no idea who paid their agent and how the amount was determined. 39% of homeowners with plans to sell think a 3% buyer’s agent commission seems high, but nearly the same share think it seems just about right. More than one-quarter of recent homebuyers (28%) have no idea how much their agent was paid, and 17% have no idea how the amount was determined. A similar share—19%—have no idea who paid their agent. That’s according to a Redfin-commissioned survey conducted by Qualtrics in February 2024. The nationally representative survey was fielded to 2,995 U.S. homeowners and renters. This report focuses on the roughly 120 respondents who indicated they bought a home in the last year and used an agent. Just over one-third of recent homebuyers know exactly how much their agent was paid (37%) and who paid them (38%), and a slightly lower share …
Rental Market Tracker: Asking Rents Rose for the Third-Straight Month in March, Driven By the Midwest
The median U.S. asking rent rose 1% from a year earlier. By comparison, rents jumped 5% in the Midwest—in part because the region hasn’t seen as big of a construction boom as other parts of the country. The median U.S. asking rent rose 0.8% year over year to $1,987 in March, marking the third consecutive increase following three months of decreases. Asking rents were little changed from February (+0.3%). Rising rents in the Midwest and Northeast helped drive the national uptick in rents, which we will discuss further in the next section. Elevated mortgage rates also likely contributed. The average 30-year-fixed mortgage rate is 6.82%, below the 23-year high of almost 8% in October, but still more than double the all-time low of 2.65% during the pandemic. Many people are delaying home purchasing plans because monthly payments for homebuyers are near their record high. That’s bolstering rental demand, and as …