The American Dream of Home Ownership has diminished for the 50% lower paid who struggle with having enough money to buy a used car, pay rent and buy food. For college grads with non-occupational degrees it includes paying off your student loan. Mortgage Rate Interest is 6.49% and Home Prices have doubled over the past 10 years.
The average price of regular gasoline remains stable at $3.185/gal. The current price of oil remains stable at $65.61. Global oil production is flat. Food prices have stabilized. The DOW is nearing its $45,014 peak. The US Nominal GDP is expected to reach $30.5 trillion in 2025. US Inflation is 2.35%.
Buying a home is out of the question for families with household incomes less than $60,000. The average single family home costs is over $400,000. Homes are available for $200,000 in Rural counties, but travel costs are high, jobs are scarce and homes in this range often require expensive repairs.
Today's average 30-year fixed mortgage rate is around 6.88%, while the 15-year fixed rate is around 6.15%. These rates can vary based on the lender, loan type, and individual borrower factors.
Loans granted for mortgages have limits based on the buyer’s disposable income. Lenders have used 28% of disposable income as a rule of thumb to approve the loan.
A family with $100,000 per year of disposable income can be approved for a monthly mortgage payment $2,333.
The monthly mortgage payment on a $400,000 mortgage typically falls between $2,600 and $3,300. This range depends on several key factors like your chosen loan program, down payment size, and current interest rates.
US
real estate prices experienced a significant contraction, beginning in 2006,
with the most substantial price drops occurring in 2008 and 2011, according
to Wikipedia. This period of
decline was part of the broader 2000s
housing bubble and
the subsequent subprime
mortgage crisis.
https://www.google.com/search?q=when+did+us+realestate+prices+contract+lower
In
2006, the average price of a new home sold in the U.S. was around $296,300 to
$305,900. The median price for existing homes was around $219,300.
https://www.google.com/search?q=what+was+the+average+price+of+a+home+in+2006
In
2011, the average price of a new single-family home in the United States was
$267,900. This figure represents the average sales price of new homes sold
that year.
https://www.google.com/search?q=what+was+the+average+price+of+a+home+in+2011
The Recession that began in 2008 was accompanied by higher unemployment due to layoffs.
Now in 2025, home prices have doubled since 2015. This has reduced demand due to lower household income due to inflation in 2022 and 2023. US Unemployment moved from 3.7% in 2019 to 4.2% in 2025.
The planned increase in middle income jobs will increase demand for homes. Higher home mortgage rates around 7% will slow the increase in supply. US wages increased by 3.4% in 2025.
Commercial and office buildings will continue to be reworked to create more apartments. Jobs in Trade Skills will be available wherever construction occurs. Office Jobs will likely stay flat to down as AI improves productivity.
First Time Home Buyers will likely find older homes to fix up.
Comments
We bought our first home in 1966 and found a 2,000 sq foot 4 bedroom ranch fixer-upper in the Exurbs of St. Louis in St. Charles County next door to my brother. We paid $750 in back property taxes owed and took over a $16,000 mortgage at 4%. Our mortgage payment was $150/month. We enjoyed doing our own repair, enhancements and construction and sold it for $36,000 in 1975.
My brother knew construction and I worked with him to add Central Air and expand Plumbing. I enlarged the septic tank and poured a bi-pass driveway and a back yard patio. We added trees and planted a vegetable garden at the back of our 1-acre lot. We replaced doors and I sanded and lightened the redwood boards that were over the stone in the front. We cleaned up and painted the interior. I added a cedar closet in the full basement.
In 1975, we moved to Salina Kansas and bought a 3000 sq ft home for $55,000. It didn’t require any upgrades. We sold it in 1983 for $85,000.
We did this again in 1983 to the 4000 sq ft brick home we bought in 1983 in Dunwoody GA. The price was $137,000 and our mortgage interest was 13%. I refinanced to 10% in 1984 and refinanced again to in 1985 with 7% 15 year loan we paid off in 2000.
I had a garage door installed. I expanded the driveway and poured concrete to create 3 parking spaces for the kids’ cars. I painted the siding myself every 5 years and we did all the interior painting. I cut the grass. We had a yard sprinkler system installed. I made picture molding for the Dining Room and Frone Hall We had a light oak floor built in the kitchen had refinished the main level wood floors to match. I built a large brick patio in back and another outside the daylight basement. I used 14 pallets of bricks and 13 tons of granite sand tapered back to a sleeved drainpipe. I had a Sub-Zero installed and Kitchen Fronts installed light cherry cabinet fronts for all built-ins. We removed the dark paneling in the Family Room, Basement and Garage ourselves and had it replaced with drywall. We raised the ceiling in the daylight basement and installed can lights. We upgraded our HVAC units. I built a fireplace surround to cover the bricks and installed marble to cover the base. We replaced the exterior siding with concrete fiber board and upgraded the screen porch and had it painted.
I really enjoyed fixing up my homes and that effort really paid off. Homes in my Dunwoody Subdivision are selling for $1 million. We have lived in our Dunwoody Home for 42 years. Our 6 kids grew up here. They like to visit here and always take a walk through the neighborhood like they did when they were kids. Our 12 grandkids get to visit each other here. Our 6 great grandkids do the same. This house has become the “Family Home” and we host lots of family gatherings for holidays, birthdays and visit dates. We plan to continue to live here and have no plans to move.
Norb Leahy, Dunwoody GA Tea Party Leader
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