The housing market is shut to almost everybody, but at the very top, buyers are still lining up and there aren’t enough homes to sell them.

On this episode of Everyday Economics from The Center Square, publisher Chris Krug and PhD economist Dr. Orphe Divounguy dig into his latest column on the luxury buyer pool. With mortgage rates around 7.4% and homebuilder confidence at 32 (down from 68 in 2019), most of the market is strained. But using Redfin data on the top 5% of homes in each market, Dr. Divounguy finds the luxury segment is highly competitive, driven by AI-fueled stock gains and fast-rising incomes at the top.

They look at why luxury inventory is so scarce in Midwest markets like Kansas City, St. Louis, and Chicago; why Jacksonville is tight while Miami and Fort Lauderdale have plenty of supply; and why Seattle is moving the other way, with its luxury buyer pool down 14% and listings up 9% amid tech layoffs, a proposed $100,000 fee on certain new H-1B petitions, and the state’s new tax on income over $1 million. Plus, why policy risk matters for housing demand and investment, and how San Francisco is riding the AI boom.

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Is this finally a buyer’s market? Not yet, but it’s getting closer. With mortgage rates above 7%, buyers are pulling back, and homeowners locked into 3% rates from 2021 have little reason to sell.

On this episode of Everyday Economics from The Center Square, publisher Chris Krug and PhD economist Dr. Orphe Divounguy break down the mortgage rate lock-in effect and what it means for buyers, sellers, and renters. They run the real numbers: on a $400,000, 30-year loan, moving from 3% to 7.4% pushes principal and interest from about $1,700 to about $2,800 a month, roughly $1,100 more.

Plus: should a renter with a down payment saved buy now at 7% and refinance later, or keep waiting? Dr. Divounguy explains why the answer depends on where you live and how long you’ll stay, why buying can make sense in Midwest markets like Cleveland, Columbus, and Kansas City, why renting often wins in New York, Los Angeles, Seattle, and San Diego, and why your stock market returns belong in the buy-vs-rent math too.

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The Fed raised rates again, but not everyone feels it the same way. Savers and investors may be coming out ahead, while renters, borrowers, and lower-income households are getting squeezed.

On this episode of Everyday Economics from The Center Square, publisher Chris Krug and PhD economist Dr. Orphe Divounguy break down who actually wins and loses when interest rates go up. They look at the Fed’s unanimous quarter-point hike, a weak September jobs report (just 29,000 jobs, with July revised to a loss), new JPMorgan Chase Institute data showing Americans selling stock gains to keep up with prices, and the University of Michigan’s October consumer sentiment survey.

Plus, a real-world look at two households on the same street, whether now is the time to buy a car with dealer lots full and 0% financing deals popping up, and why higher rates and inflation are not a windfall for state and local governments, or the taxpayers who fund them.

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