Affordable Homes at 20-Year High

According to a new report by the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB), the affordability of homeownership has reached a near-record high for the seventh consecutive quarter. Our sister site, WalletPop, takes a look at the latest findings to discuss when and how Americans should take advantage of historically low mortgage rates.

When I first became interested in real estate, rates were right around 7 percent(ish). And every time rates appeared to be creeping up, my Dad would holler, "Back in the day, rates were 14 percent -- and people still bought houses right and left! People have to have a place to live, no matter what rates are like."

While that's true, "back in the day," homes routinely went for $40,000 or $75,000. These days, the median home price is around $177,000 and in my neck of the woods, the median is upward of $600,000. Seven percent of that is a vastly higher, and more prohibitive to homeownership, than 14 percent of $40K.