Who are the savvy homebuyers amid lack of affordability?

Women also continued making strides, increasing 1% quarter-over-quarter, 4% year-over-year and 8% over the past two years.

Among other key findings were:

• First-time home buyers were down 4% quarter-over-quarter, but up 5% year-over-year, and up 47% over the past two years
• Young home buyers continue to show long-term increases, with 18- to 24-year olds increasing 73% over the past two years as of Q3 and 25- to 34-year olds increasing 17% over the same period
• Unmarried borrowers also show ongoing growth, accounting for 43% of loans transacted in Q3, a 5% year-over-year increase and 4% quarter-over-quarter increase
• The share of non-White borrowers, including Asian (+8%), Black (7%), and multi-racial (+36%) applicants, increased from the previous quarter.

The report also explored lending activity regionally, finding that Connecticut, for example – which boasted a 48% share of first-time home buyers in Q3 – offers robust down payment and closing cost assistance through the Connecticut Housing Finance Authority (CHFA).

Overall, the states with the largest percentage of first-time home buyers were: West Virginia (53%); New Jersey (52%); Massachusetts (49%); Connecticut (48%); and Iowa (47%).

That aspect also yielded surprises, Paasonen said: “I wouldn’t have expected West Virginia, for example, to be the state with such a large share of young homebuyers,” he said. “And other states like Delaware and South Dakota are states that are never part of the national conversation about homebuying and it makes me wonder what we’re missing out on.”