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Yahoo
22-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Mortgage rates inch up as US credit downgrade weighs
Mortgage rates rose again this week after the US lost its last top credit rating and jittery investors dumped their Treasury holdings, sending yields higher. The average 30-year mortgage rate was 6.86% through Wednesday, up from 6.81% a week earlier. The average 15-year mortgage rate was 6.01%, from 5.92%. 10-year Treasury yields, which mortgage rates closely track, moved sharply higher in recent days after Moody's Ratings downgraded the country's debt rating to a step below the top Aaa rank, citing a history of large fiscal deficits and growing interest costs with little evidence that new fiscal proposals would change the trajectory. 'Concerns about tariffs and the growing US debt burden have raised doubts about whether US Treasurys remain a safe-haven asset,' economist Jiayi Xu said in a statement. 'As a result, yields rose as investors reassessed the risk of holding US debt. … This upward pressure has translated into increased borrowing costs for homebuyers, which means higher mortgage rates.' The movement has pushed average mortgage rates over 7% for some buyers in recent days. Mortgage News Daily pegged the average 30-year-fixed rate at 7.08% on Wednesday. The Moody's action was largely symbolic — Fitch Ratings and S&P Global Ratings downgraded the US years earlier, and Moody's had been considering the move since 2023. Today, the US's debt rating is Aa1, the second-highest rank on the 21-notch Moody's scale. Still, the move jolted bond markets. Read more: 2025 housing market: Is it a good time to buy a house? US government bond yields have risen across the board in recent days, with the 10-year Treasury yielding 4.56% as of Thursday, up from around 4.43% before the downgrade. Just as dip buyers began to step in, a weak auction for 20-year Treasurys on Wednesday stoked fresh fears about demand for longer-dated US government debt and pushed yields higher again. Mortgage demand continues to be weak as rates rise. Applications to purchase a new home were down 5% through Friday compared to a week earlier, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association, and refinancing applications were also down 5%. As relatively high rates kept buyers cautious, existing home sales also slipped in April, according to the National Association of Realtors. Sales dropped 2% from a year ago and 0.5% from March, to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4 million home sales. Homes that sold in April likely went under contract a month or two earlier, suggesting a weak start to the traditionally busy spring homebuying season. Lawrence Yun, the NAR's chief economist, said in a statement that housing demand is continuing to grow, though few buyers are pulling the trigger. 'Any meaningful decline in mortgage rates will help release this demand,' Yun said. Claire Boston is a Senior Reporter for Yahoo Finance covering housing, mortgages, and home insurance. Sign up for the Mind Your Money newsletter Sign in to access your portfolio
New York Post
14-05-2025
- Business
- New York Post
Rent prices are falling — except for in these 5 coastal cities
Advertisement Rents across the U.S. may have been falling for nearly two years, but five large coastal metros stood out last month as having the nation's least affordable rental markets—including one of Florida's hottest tourist destinations. Miami was ranked as the least affordable of the top 50 metros, according to the April 2025 Rental Report. The median rent in April was $2,345—meaning, a typical household would have to spend roughly 38% of their monthly paycheck on housing. A rent is considered affordable if tenants spend no more than 30% of their gross household income. Advertisement The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development defines cost-burdened households as those paying more than 30%. When it comes to the Miami market, rents are $500 higher than what they should be if they were to fall within that affordability range. 4 Five large coastal metros stood out last month for having the nation's least affordable rental markets. Christopher Sadowski 'This improvement is needed, but rents are still pretty unaffordable in Miami,' says economist Jiayi Xu. Advertisement Four other major coastal hubs mirrored Miami's trajectory, showing year-over-year improvement in their rent-to-income ratios, yet remaining unaffordable for many people. A typical family living in a leased unit in New York City in April had to spend more than 37% of their income on a median rent of $2,936, while in Los Angeles the rent share of income was 35.6% and the median rent stood at $2,712. 4 A family in New York City last month had to spend more than 37% of their income on a median rent of $2,936. Unwind – Boston had the fourth-worst rent-to-income ratio last month, with a household having to spend more than 32% of its paycheck to afford a $2,968 monthly rental property—the second-highest rent among the 50 tracked metros, trailing only San Jose, CA. Advertisement San Diego rounded out the top five least-affordable rental markets, with locals having to set aside more than 31% of their income to pay $2,669 in rent for a typical unit. 'Encouragingly, the rent-to-income ratio in all five of these metros has declined compared to the same time last year, signaling a modest improvement in affordability across these most cost-burdened markets,' notes Xu. 4 San Diego locals had to set aside over 31% of their income to pay $2,669 for rent. f11photo – Rent continues to decline nationally In more positive news for renters, April marked the 21st consecutive month of annual rent declines, with rents down $29 from the same time a year ago. The median rent in the 50 largest metros was $1,699, which was $5 higher than in March, but $60 lower than its August 2022 peak. Start and end your day informed with our newsletters Morning Report and Evening Update: Your source for today's top stories Thanks for signing up! Enter your email address Please provide a valid email address. By clicking above you agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. Never miss a story. Check out more newsletters Xu points out that the month-over-month uptick is seasonal, as rents tend to rise in the spring and summer, before edging down in the fall and winter. 'However, this spring's monthly increase was more modest than last year's, signaling a cooling rental market,' adds the economist. Advertisement The rental market's slower pace is mostly driven by the construction of more multifamily units, which has helped ease the upward pressure on prices, says Xu. As a result, the national rental vacancy rate surged to 7.1% in the first quarter of 2025, the highest level in nearly seven years. 4 'This spring's monthly increase was more modest than last year's, signaling a cooling rental market,' economist Jiayi Xu said. Yggdrasill – When looking at rent prices by unit size, studios and one-bedroom properties were down 1.9% year over year nationally, settling at $1,410 and $1,578, respectively, while rents on two-bedroom units declined by 1.7%, to $1,887. Affordability improves in all but 2 cities Overall affordability also slightly improved last month from a year ago. Renters earning the typical household income of $7,263 spent 23.4% of their paycheck to lease a property, compared with 24.7% in April 2024. Advertisement Among the 50 markets analyzed for the report, Oklahoma City, OK, emerged as April's most affordable city, with the typical family spending just 16.7% of their monthly paycheck on the median rent of $994. Other top affordable rental markets included Austin, TX, Columbus, OH, Raleigh, NC, and Minneapolis, with the rent share of income in those cities ranging from 17.2% to 18.5%. Across all the tracked markets, Kansas City, MO, was the sole outlier where the share of income spent on rent edged up in April, reaching 20.7%, a 1.1 percentage-point increase from a year ago. Advertisement 'Fortunately, this is still below the recommended share, but the trend indicates a growing cost burden for Kansas City renters,' says Xu. In Milwaukee, the rent-to-income ratio also showed no annual improvement, remaining flat with last year, at 26.8%. Looking at the most improved markets in terms of affordability, San Diego topped the list in April, after the share of income needed to afford a median rent in the California metro dropped from 35% last year to 31.1.%. Advertisement Denver, Jacksonville, FL, Miami, Birmingham, AL, and Phoenix—all located in either the South or the West—saw their rent-to-income ratios shrink from April 2024, meaning that people in those metros spent less of their monthly paycheck on housing needs. 'The primary driver behind this trend in both regions is the increase in new rental supply, which is helping to ease rent pressures,' says Xu.
Yahoo
14-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Rent Prices Are Falling—but These 5 Coastal Cities Remain the Least Affordable
Rents across the U.S. may have been falling for nearly two years, but five large coastal metros stood out last month as having the nation's least affordable rental markets—including one of Florida's hottest tourist destinations. Miami was ranked as the least affordable of the top 50 metros, according to the April 2025 Rental Report. The median rent in April was $2,345—meaning, a typical household would have to spend roughly 38% of their monthly paycheck on housing. A rent is considered affordable if tenants spend no more than 30% of their gross household income. The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development defines cost-burdened households as those paying more than 30%. When it comes to the Miami market, rents are $500 higher than what they should be if they were to fall within that affordability range. 'This improvement is needed, but rents are still pretty unaffordable in Miami,' says economist Jiayi Xu. Four other major coastal hubs mirrored Miami's trajectory, showing year-over-year improvement in their rent-to-income ratios, yet remaining unaffordable for many people. A typical family living in a leased unit in New York City in April had to spend more than 37% of their income on a median rent of $2,936, while in Los Angeles the rent share of income was 35.6% and the median rent stood at $2,712. Boston had the fourth-worst rent-to-income ratio last month, with a household having to spend more than 32% of its paycheck to afford a $2,968 monthly rental property—the second-highest rent among the 50 tracked metros, trailing only San Jose, CA. San Diego rounded out the top five least-affordable rental markets, with locals having to set aside more than 31% of their income to pay $2,669 in rent for a typical unit. 'Encouragingly, the rent-to-income ratio in all five of these metros has declined compared to the same time last year, signaling a modest improvement in affordability across these most cost-burdened markets,' notes Xu. In more positive news for renters, April marked the 21st consecutive month of annual rent declines, with rents down $29 from the same time a year ago. The median rent in the 50 largest metros was $1,699, which was $5 higher than in March, but $60 lower than its August 2022 peak. Xu points out that the month-over-month uptick is seasonal, as rents tend to rise in the spring and summer, before edging down in the fall and winter. 'However, this spring's monthly increase was more modest than last year's, signaling a cooling rental market,' adds the economist. The rental market's slower pace is mostly driven by the construction of more multifamily units, which has helped ease the upward pressure on prices, says Xu. As a result, the national rental vacancy rate surged to 7.1% in the first quarter of 2025, the highest level in nearly seven years. When looking at rent prices by unit size, studios and one-bedroom properties were down 1.9% year over year nationally, settling at $1,410 and $1,578, respectively, while rents on two-bedroom units declined by 1.7%, to $1,887. Overall affordability also slightly improved last month from a year ago. Renters earning the typical household income of $7,263 spent 23.4% of their paycheck to lease a property, compared with 24.7% in April 2024. Among the 50 markets analyzed for the report, Oklahoma City, OK, emerged as April's most affordable city, with the typical family spending just 16.7% of their monthly paycheck on the median rent of $994. Other top affordable rental markets included Austin, TX, Columbus, OH, Raleigh, NC, and Minneapolis, with the rent share of income in those cities ranging from 17.2% to 18.5%. Across all the tracked markets, Kansas City, MO, was the sole outlier where the share of income spent on rent edged up in April, reaching 20.7%, a 1.1 percentage-point increase from a year ago. 'Fortunately, this is still below the recommended share, but the trend indicates a growing cost burden for Kansas City renters,' says Xu. In Milwaukee, the rent-to-income ratio also showed no annual improvement, remaining flat with last year, at 26.8%. Looking at the most improved markets in terms of affordability, San Diego topped the list in April, after the share of income needed to afford a median rent in the California metro dropped from 35% last year to 31.1.%. Denver, Jacksonville, FL, Miami, Birmingham, AL, and Phoenix—all located in either the South or the West—saw their rent-to-income ratios shrink from April 2024, meaning that people in those metros spent less of their monthly paycheck on housing needs. 'The primary driver behind this trend in both regions is the increase in new rental supply, which is helping to ease rent pressures,' says Xu. Exclusive Surf Club Community in Austin Draws A-List Buyers, Including Matthew McConaughey and Drew Brees Taylor Swift's Former Love Nest on Cape Cod Hits the Market for $14.5 Million The Best States in America: Utah, New Hampshire, Idaho, Minnesota, and Nebraska Come Out on Top
