It's that time of year when all kinds of "top" lists start making their way into our collective consciousness. So I'm picking three of my favorite housing-related stories published by Money this year, hoping that you'll find them just as interesting as I do.
First up, I have Adam Hardy's first-person account of his journey to buying a home with 0% down and at a below-market interest rate. I chose this story because it highlights a relatively unknown nonprofit organization, the Neighborhood Assistance Corporation of America (NACA).
NACA provides buyers with the opportunity to buy a home with 0% down and no private mortgage insurance (try finding that combo with any other type of loan). And that below-market interest rate? It may be up to 1% lower than what you can get from a traditional lender.
Best of all, NACA provides financial counseling and a step-by-step plan to ensure you can afford the home in the long term.
Next is this story from Pete Grieve on the controversy between Zillow, the leading online listing site, and Compass, the largest real estate brokerage, over private listings. Zillow is dead set against the practice of marketing a property to a limited number of potential buyers before placing it on a major listing site. The online marketplace alleges that buyers would be hurt because they wouldn't have access to the widest possible selection of homes.
Compass, on the other hand, argues that private listings allow home sellers to show the property to a limited number of buyers and gather feedback that could improve their marketing strategy when the property goes public.
The issue hasn't been resolved yet and is currently before a judge, who will decide if Zillow can ban privately listed homes from its site. But I have to admit that watching two industry giants duke it out over a home seller's right to market their home as they see fit is fun.
Last, but not least, is the story I wrote about how younger buyers, especially Gen Z, are increasingly opting to rent rather than buy a home. More than two-thirds of survey respondents in this age group chose renting as the better financial option.
While affordability is the first reason that comes to mind for a reluctance to buy, it's not the primary reason highlighted in the survey.
That honor, cited by a whopping 83% of respondents, went to being able to save money for life experiences. Yep. Life experiences, such as traveling or learning a new skill.
Other respondents were more interested in finding the right place to settle down and wanted to explore different neighborhoods before selecting a long-term home.
It's about having the freedom to break from traditional expectations and choosing the best course of action for yourself.
And that's probably the best reason I've ever heard for not buying a house.
