Monthly mortgage payment up nearly 20% from last year. Why are prices rising?

Elevated mortgage rates and sales prices mean owning a home is about 20% more expensive than it was last year.

The typical U.S. homebuyer’s monthly mortgage payment was $2,605 during the four weeks ending July 30, down $32 from July’s record high but up 19% from a year prior, according to a Friday report from real estate listing company Redfin.

The median home sale price was $380,250 – up 3.2% from a year ago and the biggest increase since November, according to Redfin. The company's report noted that home prices are increasing because of the mismatch between supply and demand, with the total number of homes for sale down 19% as homeowners hang onto their lower mortgage rates. 

“High rates are also sidelining prospective buyers, but not as much as they’re deterring would-be sellers,” the report reads. Redfin’s Homebuyer Demand Index found early-stage demand is down just 4% from a year ago.  

What are mortgage rates right now?

The average rate for a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage was 6.9% last week, up from 6.8% the week prior, according to Freddie Mac.

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“The combination of upbeat economic data and the U.S. government credit rating downgrade caused mortgage rates to rise this week,” Freddie Mac Chief Economist Sam Khater said in a news release. “Despite higher rates and lower purchase demand, home prices have increased due to very low unsold inventory.”

Total housing inventory was 1.08 million units at the end of June, down 13.6% from one year prior, according to the National Association of Realtors.

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Who can afford a home?

Amid rising housing prices, Redfin found that first-time homebuyers would need to earn close to $64,500 to afford a starter home, with the typical starter home in June selling at a record $243,000 – up more than 45% from before the pandemic.