Innovative Americans Craft Creative Fixes in the Challenging Housing Market

Christine Short feels fortunate to be a homeowner.

“The pandemic was the only reason we managed to buy a home,” she explained. “The news was full of stories about people leaving New York,” while she and her husband searched for a place in Brooklyn to bring up their young son.

“We found a desperate developer who couldn’t sell a single unit in a renovated brownstone,” she recounted. At the same time, mortgage rates were dropping sharply. Her husband, a physician, was able to obtain a doctor’s mortgage, which meant they only had to put down 10% and didn’t need to pay for mortgage insurance.

“It took a perfect storm of circumstances for us to secure even this modest home,” said Short, who oversees research at a financial services company.

Whether it’s apartments or houses, young kids or aging parents, the narrative is similar throughout the United States. Americans are navigating the tightest housing market in recent memory by being resourceful, employing clever strategies, and piecing together creative solutions, much like the famed TV character MacGyver.

Strategies Americans Use to Achieve Homeownership

In the Columbus, Ohio metropolitan area, James Deskins operates as a broker at The HomeBuyer’s Advocate. He emphasizes the importance of preparation: his clients are organized, preapproved for mortgages, and always ready to act when the right house appears.

Occasionally, good fortune plays a role too.

“A home had just returned to the market after a deal fell through,” he mentioned. “We were perfectly timed and ready to make a move.” His client is now in the process of buying that house.

Deskins’ daughter was also fortunate during her home search. She secured a favorable mortgage rate when rates briefly dipped last fall and found a fixer-upper, which helped keep their financial future secure without draining their finances.

Dropping Mortgage Rates Trigger Application Spike

This scenario is reflective of a broader trend across the country, evident in housing market statistics. When mortgage rates hit an 18-month low in September, there was a surge in mortgage applications as people rushed to take advantage of the lower rates.

This increase led to a significant uptick in sales. According to the National Association of Realtors (NAR), previously-owned home sales in November climbed to the highest annual rate observed since 2021.

“The significant activity in the early autumn confirms that Americans are keeping a close eye on the market,” stated Selma Hepp, chief economist at CoreLogic. However, with the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage creeping back towards 7%, she expressed uncertainty about future market conditions.

In a striking revelation, NAR noted in November that only 24% of home buyers were first-time purchasers in 2024, the lowest percentage on record.

Deciding Between Renting and Buying? Why Not Do Both?

Earlier this year, Rosaline Tio and Dave Hung moved across Atlanta. They had been living in a townhome since 2017 and stayed put after their first child was born. But the arrival of another baby made their space too tight.

They found that everything available for purchase was prohibitively expensive, especially with mortgage rates now double what they previously paid. So, they opted to rent a larger home and lease out their townhome.

Christine Short and her family faced a similar situation. They were content in their Brooklyn brownstone purchased in 2020 until their family grew with the birth of a daughter two years later. The cramped space quickly became a source of stress.

After a challenging search with little to no prospects for buying a three-bedroom home in prime Brooklyn, despite their readiness to compromise on a higher mortgage rate, they too decided to rent a bigger home and lease the smaller one. It’s more expensive, and Short isn’t thrilled about the uncertainties of renting from a landlord who has already raised their rent once.

However, the move has given them more space, a great neighborhood, and access to an excellent elementary school, while allowing them to continue building equity in their first home.

“It’s been a good move,” Short concluded. “We’re happy.”