Federal Reserve warns of "brewing U.S. housing bubble"

Homebuyers have faced a tough proposition during the pandemic: Swallow rapid price increases and forgo typical steps like house inspections, or risk getting left out of the real estate market. Those dynamics have caused some observers to question whether the U.S. is repeating the housing bubble of the early 2000s, which led to a painful housing crash in 2006 and the Great Recession the following year. 

The answer, warns the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas, is that the market is showing "signs of a brewing U.S. housing bubble."

That may be unsettling to millions of potential homebuyers who are coping with myriad financial pressure points. For one, mortgage rates are swiftly rising, reaching an average of 4.67% for a fixed 30-year loan for the week ended March 31 — the highest since 2018, according to Freddie Mac. And the national median listing price for a home has jumped to a record $405,000, Realtor.com said on March 31.