Down Payment Percentages on the Decline
First-time homebuyers are making their mark on the housing market, and that has become particularly evident in the decline of down payment percentages.
According to Mortgage News Daily, the first quarter of 2015 saw the lowest average percentage for down payments that we’ve seen in three years.
“Down payment trends in the first quarter indicate that first-time homebuyers are finally starting to come out of the woodwork, albeit it gradually,” said Daren Blomquist, vice president at RealtyTrac. “New low down payment loan programs recently introduced by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, along with the lower insurance premiums for FHA loans that took effect at the end of January are helping, given that first time homebuyers typically aren’t able to pony up large down payments. Also helping tilt the balances toward first time homebuyers in the first quarter is less competition from the large institutional investors that have been buying up starter home inventory as rentals.”
Image via flickr/Tax Credits