The share of U.S. homes worth $1 million or more has hit an all-time high as a shortage of housing inventory continues to drive prices upwards, the Wall Street Journal reported.
Roughly 8.5% of U.S. homes are now worth $1 million or more, up from 7.6% a year ago and 4% prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, an analysis from real estate brokerage Redfin provided to the WSJ found. Median U.S. home sale price rose to a record $442,525 in June, while the median price for luxury homes — defined as the top 5% of listings — reached a record $1.18 million in the second quarter, according to Redfin.
Home prices have skyrocketed as many Americans are unwilling to list their homes and give up the ultra-low mortgage rates they secured prior to the Federal Reserve’s 2022-2023 interest rate hikes, in turn constraining housing inventory. The U.S. had a shortage of 4 to 7 million homes as of November 2023, according to an estimate from The Pew Charitable Trusts.
The average 30-year fixed-rate mortgage sat at 6.49% Thursday, well above when President Joe Biden took office and the rate was under 3%, according to the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis. […]
– Read More: dailycallernewsfoundation.org