The path to homeownership traditionally taken by U.S. consumers is becoming more difficult to navigate — and not simply because of the elevated interest rate environment.
As purchasing a home has grown increasingly difficult for typical earners, the costs of sustaining homeownership have also risen sharply through higher insurance premiums, property taxes and repair and maintenance costs.
Industry leaders at the Mortgage Bankers Association’s annual conference examined those challenges during a panel discussion Monday, seeking solutions to affordability challenges reaching beyond mortgage qualification.
Expanding access to homebuying, the MBA panel said, must correspond to borrowers’ ability to sustain the financial commitment of homeowners...