Down payments, something usually necessary for a traditional mortgage, have eased off post-pandemic highs by 10% in January 2023 to an average $42,375 per new origination. The median down payment was down 35% from the peak it reached in June, but still up more than 30% from pre-pandemic levels.Â
At January’s levels, the median down payment was equal to 10% of the agreed upon purchase price, down 3.6% year-over-year. Median down payments peaked most recently at 17.5% in May 2022. The last time down-payment percentages were this low was early 2021, before the pandemic homebuying boom drove buyers to put more money down to make their offers more attractive.Â
Down payments are falling for several reasons, according...