Allllrighty Then! Housing Market's Got a Case of the 'Can't Afford It' Blues!

Pandemic's Pad Party's Over?

Greetings gentle beings! Ace Ventura Pet Detective AND now... Housing Market Investigator at your service! Remember those halcyon days of yore? The pandemic hit mortgage rates went lower than a snake's belly in a limbo contest and everyone was snatching up houses faster than you can say 'SHIKAKA!' But uh oh spaghetti o's! Now we've got a real head scratcher on our hands! Prices are higher than a giraffe's expectations at a salad bar and finding a decent affordable crib is tougher than finding a clean pair of undies in Einhorn's closet! You get the picture?

Supply? More Like Supply...NOT!

The S & P CoreLogic Case Shiller Index says prices are up 39% since March 2019! That's like turning a chihuahua into a great dane! The article says the supply crunch is easing but it's not helping those in the lower market. It's like offering a glass of water to a guy who's stuck in the Sahara! You see demand is hotter than the hinges of hell especially for those budget friendly homes. But they're scarcer than hen's teeth at a chicken convention! A new report says those earning between $75,000 and $100,000 saw the most improvement in listings. Still they could only afford about 21% of homes. Back in 2019 they could afford almost 50%!

Undercover…Under Supplied!

The National Association of Realtors and Realtor.com (try saying that five times fast!) are on the case sniffing out where the market’s got its tail stuck. Turns out affordability is determined by some fancy calculations involving 30 year mortgages and how much of your hard earned moolah goes to the monthly payments. Turns out if you're making less than $75,000 finding a home is like trying to teach a walrus to tap dance! The listings you can actually afford have shrunk faster than a wet wool sweater! And as for folks making $50,000 well let's just say they're looking at about 8.7% of the market. That's just sad Jim Carrey sad.

Richie Riches Rule the Roost!

Meanwhile those high rollers making a cool $250,000 or more? They can practically buy the whole darn neighborhood! They've got access to 80% of the listings! It's like a fancy buffet where only the rich get to pile their plates high while the rest of us are left picking at the crumbs! It's not fair I tell you! NOT FAIR! We need more homes NOW! Or I'll unleash the fury of a thousand suns! Figuratively speaking of course. I don't have that kind of power…yet.

Midwest Magic...Maybe?

Danielle Hale from Realtor.com (still can't say it five times fast!) says things are getting a little better in the Midwest and the South. Places like Akron Ohio; St. Louis; and Pittsburgh are supposedly balanced. Balanced like a flamingo on a unicycle! But don't get your hopes up too high buttercups! Over 40% of the big city markets are still struggling. Places like Seattle and Washington D.C. are hotter than a freshly paved road in July. You gotta make over $150,000 just to afford HALF the homes available! That's bananas!

SoCal's Got Some 'Splainin' to Do!

And then there are the usual suspects: Southern California New York City... These places are in worse shape than a porcupine in a balloon factory! Decades of underbuilding limited land high costs and zoning laws tighter than a nun's knuckles. They're all to blame! Homebuilders are trying bless their little hearts but tariffs and immigration policies are making things harder than finding a parking spot at a clown convention. Single family housing starts are down down DOWN! Which is a downer to say the least. Looks like Ace is going to have to bust some heads and solve this housing crisis Ventura style! Allllllrighty then!