The Washington Post reports that saving for a downpayment and paying back student loans continue to be a major challenge to potential first-time homebuyers.
“First-time buyers are a bedrock of the housing market,” Dina ElBoghdady writes in the Post. “Which is why so much attention is focused on their habits. When people purchase a first home, they enable existing homeowners to move or trade up.” Data from The Realtors group show that the share of first-time buyers has dropped to its lowest level in 27 years.