22 August 2023
August 2023 has been marked as the most challenging month for housing affordability this century, with average 30-year fixed mortgage rates skyrocketing to 7.48%, a peak not seen since 2000. The Atlanta Fed’s data shows housing affordability plunging even before this recent hike, surpassing the lows of the 2006 housing bubble. This crisis has roots in the last year when mortgage rates leaped from 3% to over 7%. When combined with a 40% spike in U.S. home prices during the Pandemic Housing Boom in just two years, the nation faces unprecedented housing unaffordability.