Trump pledges to make housing affordable while keeping values up

 President Donald Trump said his administration plans to make housing more affordable for new homebuyers while keeping home values high for existing homeowners.

Trump delivered his State of the Union address to a joint session of Congress on Tuesday night and touted the lower cost of new mortgages since he took office in January 2025.

"Mortgage rates are the lowest in four years and falling fast, and the annual cost of a typical new mortgage is down almost $5,000 just since I took office. One year," Trump said.

"Low interest rates will solve the Biden-created housing problem while at the same time protecting the values of those people who already own a house that really feel rich for the first time in their lives. We want to protect those values; we want to keep those values up. We are going to do both. And we are going to keep it that way," the president added.

Data from Freddie Mac shows that the average rate on a 30-year fixed mortgage declined from 7.04% in January 2025, when Trump began his second term, to the current 6.01%.

While lower interest rates can help with the affordability of mortgages taken out by new homeowners, they have an inverse relationship with home prices, as lower rates stimulate demand among prospective buyers, which pushes home values higher.

That dynamic can counteract the affordability improvements from lower mortgage rates by increasing the size of the mortgage, as both elements factor into the owner's monthly payments.

Investors have noted that the most effective way to lower home prices would be to expand the supply of homes, though they cautioned that most of the laws and regulations are governed at the state and local level, which gives the federal government few options.

Trump also discussed his plan to ban institutional investors from buying large numbers of homes, citing the experience of a State of the Union guest who he said was outbid for 20 homes by "gigantic investment firms that bypassed inspection. Paid all cash and turned those houses into rentals, stealing away her American dream."

The president said that stories like those prompted his executive order banning large investment firms from buying homes and called on Congress to make the ban permanent, adding that, "We want homes for people, not for corporations."

Trump's order directs federal regulators to promote home sales to individuals and to issue guidance preventing federal programs from facilitating single-family home sales to Wall Street investors. The order also mandates antitrust scrutiny of institutional home purchases and calls on Congress to codify the changes into law.

Jake Krimmel, senior economist at Realtor.com, said of the move that, "In particular, large institutional investors represent a relatively small share of the national housing stock, and because their activity is often highly localized, it remains an open question whether banning new purchases would meaningfully shift metro-level markets."

National Association of Home Builders CEO Jim Tobin said that his organization has been engaged with the administration to push policies that could help lower the cost of building new homes, adding that "corporate investment in housing has been a driver of new home construction."

Wall Street firms including Blackstone, American Homes 4 Rent and Progress Residential have bought thousands of homes since the 2008 financial crisis prompted a wave of foreclosures. Firms owned about 3% of all single-family rental homes by June 2022, government data showed.

Those firms dispute that their investments have stoked inflation in housing prices, with Blackstone noting it has been a net seller of homes for the last decade.

https://www.foxbusiness.com/politics/trump-pledges-make-housing-affordable-while-keeping-values-up

First time California homebuyers can now get $150K for down-payments — but clock is ticking

 First-time homebuyers in California have just 20 days starting tomorrow to lock in up to $150,000 in down payment assistance through a revived state program aimed at easing the crushing cost of buying in the Golden State.

The state’s Dream For All Shared Appreciation Loan Program (DFA) is opening for a limited 20-day window, running from Feb. 24 through March 16.

The program, sponsored by the California Housing Finance Agency (CalHFA), offers eligible first-time buyers either 20% of a home’s purchase price or up to $150,000 — whichever is less — to cover a down payment or closing costs.

“The California Dream For All program has already helped thousands of Californians buy their first home,” Tony Sertich, executive director of CalHFA, told The Mortgage Reports. “As these homeowners begin to repay their loans, the funds are reinvested into the program to create a cycle that will continue far into the future, planting the seeds of generational wealth to help keep the California dream alive.”

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The loan could cover your entire downpayment.Rido – stock.adobe.com

In high-cost coastal markets like San Francisco and Los Angeles, where median home prices often top $1 million, that could mean the full $150,000 toward a down payment.

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This could be you, if you’re lucky enough to be selected and approved.WavebreakMediaMicro – stock.adobe.com

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Illustration of a homeowner’s financial journey with a CalHFA Shared Appreciation Loan.CalHFA

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Illustration of the California Dream For All Shared Appreciation Loan, showing how a moderate-income homeowner’s initial $500,000 home value appreciates to $640,000 over five years, detailing the distribution of equity upon sale, and the DFA loan payback.CalHFA

On a $750,000 home, for example, 20% equals $150,000 — meaning a qualifying buyer could potentially put down 20% with little to no money saved for the down payment itself.

Unlike a traditional grant, the assistance is structured as a shared appreciation loan. Borrowers repay the original loan amount when they sell or refinance the home — plus 15% to 20% of the home’s appreciation. Those returns are then recycled back into the program to help future buyers.

The program operates on a lottery system. Interested buyers must first register for a voucher, and a randomized drawing will determine who receives one.

It is not first-come, first-served.

Here’s who is eligible

• At least one borrower must be a first-generation homebuyer
• All borrowers must be first-time homebuyers
• At least one borrower must be a current California resident
• Household income must fall within CalHFA income limits for the county where the home is being purchased
• Buyer must obtain a DFA Lender Pre-Approval Letter before registering

Prospective buyers who meet the eligibility criteria would need to contact a CalHFA-approved lender offering the Dream For All program to secure a pre-approval letter — a required step before registering for the voucher drawing. Applicants must also complete a free, one-hour online education course explaining how shared appreciation works and how it affects long-term repayment.

Then, after submitting their application through the online portal with all required documents, buyers are one step closer to being randomly selected in the voucher drawing.

Documents you’ll need handy to apply

• California Dream For All (DFA) Lender Pre-Approval Letter
• Government-issued ID (passport, driver’s license, state ID, military ID, permanent residence card, visa or employment authorization document)
• Foster care documentation (if applicable)
• Information for both parents of the designated first-generation borrower, including:
  • Full name
  • Date of birth
  • Date of death (if applicable)
  • Current address
  • Proof of parent relationship (birth certificate or adoption papers)

The state says the goal is to create a sustainable funding cycle — helping one generation of Californians buy homes while reinvesting repayments to support the next.

https://nypost.com/2026/02/23/real-estate/first-time-california-homebuyers-eligible-for-150k-in-downpayment-assistance-but-theres-a-catch/

American homebuyers gain most purchasing power since 2022

 A new analysis finds prospective homebuyers have seen their purchasing power rise in the last year due to higher incomes and lower mortgage rates.

Zillow published a report on Monday that found a median-income U.S. household can now comfortably afford a $331,483 home with a 20% down payment. It found that the typical mortgage payment is 8.4% lower than it was a year ago when excluding taxes, insurance and assuming a 20% downpayment. 

Mortgage rates have fallen from an average of 6.96% in January 2025 to 6.1% last month, while incomes have ticked higher to give a median-income household an extra $30,302 in buying power compared with a year ago due to shifts in mortgage rates and household incomes.

"A more than $30,000 gain in buying power is meaningful for households that have been stretched thin by high rates. It can mean the difference between settling and choosing," said Kara Ng, senior economist at Zillow.

"That doesn't suddenly make this market affordable for everyone, but it does crack open doors that had firmly shut when rates peaked," Ng added.

Zillow's report noted that with the recent changes in household income and mortgage rates, the purchasing power of homebuyers is now at its highest level since March 2022, when mortgage rates were still below 5%.

The most recent low point for affordability was October 2023, when the median household could afford a $272,224 home as mortgage rates averaged 7.62% that month – the highest average for any month since 2000. 

The latest dip in mortgage rates provided the biggest boost to homebuyers' purchasing power in the nation's most expensive housing markets.

Zillow noted that a median-income household in San Jose, Californina, has gained nearly $74,000 in buying power from a year ago – the largest gain among major metropolitan areas.

San Francisco buyers saw a boost of $56,115, and they were followed by peers in Washington, D.C. ($48,881), San Diego ($46,505) and Boston ($46,390). 

The number of homes that are affordable for a median-income household has also increased from a year ago by about 82,300 homes, Zillow found, with about 447,000 homes listed in January.

The 447,000 affordable home listings represent about 40.3% of total listings, an increase from 34.8% last year. 

Markets where home values have declined over the last year make even more homes available to median-income buyers, boosting purchasing power alongside the lower mortgage rates.

Houston led the country in the growth of affordable home inventory, with nearly 4,000 more homes listed for sale that are within reach for median-income buyers when compared with last year.

Other metros with significant jumps in affordable home inventory are Phoenix with 3,434 more than last year, Dallas with 3,267, Miami with 2,981 and Atlanta's gain of 2,279, Zillow found. Each of those markets has seen home values decline from last year.

https://www.foxbusiness.com/economy/american-homebuyers-gain-most-purchasing-power-since-2022

Palisades Fire survivors furious after getting brush clearance fines from LA

 Residents of Pacific Palisades are furious and insulted after owners whose homes burned down in the deadly fires last year received brush clearance fines from the city.

“This is insulting and cruel. We have no house and we have no brush,” Carol Sandborn, a resident who lost her home of 40 years, wrote in red ink on the invoice and sent it back to the city. “I was a little astonished.”

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Residents are mad at the city for allowing this to happen.FOX LA

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No one could be reached on the phone below for further clarification.FOX LA

LA Fire Department brush fines are penalties issued to property owners in high-risk zones who fail to clear hazardous vegetation, ensuring critical defensible space to slow the spread of wildfires.

Residents say the fire department never inspected their properties — which are under construction — and that they do not intend on paying the fines as a matter of “principle,” Fox 11 reported. The bills show a charge of $31 for alleged non-compliance.

“It’s one final blow, you know, after they screwed us over, they’re still trying to take money,” another resident told the network. “$31 is nothing, but you know I’m not paying it. This is the principle of it.”

Several other people have gotten a notice, and many are angry. The mayor’s office said it is working with the fire department to look into what happened.

The California Post called the number listed on the bills, but the call went straight to voicemail, and the inbox was full. Neither a message could be left nor a department representative reached by phone to dispute the charge or ask for clarification.

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Residents say they are not paying the fines.FOX LA

“It’s disappointing to get something like this and feel that somehow the city is working against you instead of with you,” Sandborn noted.

The mayor’s office later called the fines “unacceptable.” The LAFD were contacted for comment but did not immediately respond.

“No resident who lost their homes in the Palisades fire should receive this charge,” she said in a statement. “The Mayor’s office is in contact with the LAFD to determine next steps.”

https://nypost.com/2026/02/23/us-news/palisades-fire-survivors-furious-after-getting-brush-clearance-fines/