Us: home affordability at record high, builders' report says

Recently released data suggests that borrowers could be looking at once-in-a-lifetime deals, as rock-bottom prices and record-low interest rates continue to create perfect storm buying conditions.

Numbers released by the National Association of Home Builders on Thursday indicate that home affordability has hit a 20-year high. The release agrees with a recent Department of Housing and Urban Development assessment that found that affordability is at a 41-year peak.

In the fourth quarter of 2011, 75.9 percent of homes sold were affordable to families who earn the national median income of $64,200; that's according to the Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo Housing Opportunity Index. But even as consumers would seem to be poised to cash in on a market brimming with deals, rigid lending requirements continue to prevent many borrowers from capitalizing on the opportune conditions, the association says.

Source: RealEstate.AOL.com