Home Buying Gets More Affordable in a Surprising Way

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Americans keeping their jobs and seeing their wages increase may put them in a stronger home buying position even amid elevated mortgage rates, some economists say. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported that employers added 353,000 jobs in January, with earnings increasing by 0.6 percent for average hourly wages. The Federal Reserve is unlikely to cut rates in the immediate future due to elevated inflation, but may do so sometime in 2024. As hiring continues and wages improve, prospective buyers may be able to withstand high mortgage rates. The cost of buying a home rose by 5.4 percent in January, slightly above wage growth, but prices are increasing at a slower pace than in previous months. Affordability could further improve as inflation drops and the Fed begins to normalize monetary policy.

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https://www.newsweek.com/home-buying-gets-more-affordable-surprising-way-1866521