According to the Urban-Brookings Tax Policy Center, an independent think tank, the American Rescue Act signed into law last week by President Biden will generate a 3.8% increase in 2021 income for the average American tax filer, which translates to roughly $3,060. Check The Balance for more about what this could mean for you.
The housing market has seen a quicker recovery from the pandemic than much of the economy thanks to two key factors: a dramatic drop in interest rates, and a significant rebound in the stock market — especially for some of our local high-tech giants. While 30-year fixed mortgage rates have ticked up just a bit in the new year to 2.73%, they’re still well below the nearly 5% rate we experienced in late 2018.
The tables below reflect market statistics and values for Q4 2020. It’s no surprise that we saw a hot finish to 2020 as final quarter numbers are often starkly different from stats for the full year. It’s also not unusual for more expensive markets to have softer supply and demand statistics — such as higher average days on the market and lower percentages of listings accepting offers within the period — though this is certainly not always the case.
According to a new survey from realtor.com, 47% of first-time homebuyers in 2020 said the most important factor in their decision was their personal finances, and more than two-thirds (68%) were surprised by what they could afford — more or less. Read more from Forbes.
With mortgage rates at record lows, millennial buyers are taking advantage. In fact, they were responsible for a majority of the record number of mortgage applications in 2020. As reported by Forbes, San José was the most popular metropolitan landing spot for millennial homebuyers. Rounding out the top 10: Boston, Denver, Minneapolis, Buffalo, San Francisco, Salt Lake City, Austin, Pittsburgh, and New York City.
