Brian Wesbury, chief economist of First Trust Advisors, joins ‘Varney & Co.’ to discuss President Donald Trump’s proposed 50-year mortgage plan and possible rate dividend payments.
Future home buyers a breakthrough could finally come in certain markets in 2026, according to Realtor.com’s latest forecast.
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Realtor.com estimates that home prices in Raleigh, Denver and Phoenix will fall by 2026. (Eric Thayer/Bloomberg/Getty Images)
“We predict outright price declines across much of Florida,” Krimmel added, noting that Miami is the exception and is expected to see an increase.
The forecast also suggests that affordability will improve in several markets even as home prices rise. The expectation is that falling mortgage rates will reduce monthly payments enough to offset modest price increases.
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“Lower interest rates mean lower monthly payments. Even urban areas where we expect modest price increases will be more affordable in 2026 than in 2025,” Krimmel said.
Austin is one of the metropolitan areas in the United States where housing pressure will decrease. (Jakub Porzycki/NurPhoto/Getty Images)
If interest rates were to fall to 6.3% as expected, a 1% to 2% increase in home prices would still leave buyers paying less each month than they would in 2025.
This dynamic is expected to manifest itself in markets such as Austin, Dallas, Nashville, Charlotte and Miami.
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Realtor.com’s forecast also predicts that easing mortgage rates and slower home price growth will push affordability in a slightly better direction through 2026.
Krimmel says the monthly payment on a average priced home will fall by 1.3% next year, marking the first annual decline since 2020.
“We are hardly out of the woods yet when it comes to affordability, but at least we are moving in the right direction,” he said.
