57% of future homebuyers plan to put down less than the recommended 20% on a house

US housing costs have risen by roughly 175% between 1991 and 2026—but a growing number of Gen Zers are becoming homeowners anyway. In 2025, 4% of homebuyers were Gen Z, up from 3% the year before.

Roughly 37% of first-time US home buyers have student debt

When those people have extra money, they might wonder: Is it better to pay down my mortgage or my student loans first? This article argues that the answer depends on each loan's interest rate, among other factors.

Construction of small, affordable starter homes has decreased 75% since the 1970s

Rising costs aren’t the only thing stopping first-time homebuyers from buying real estate—only 9% of recent new construction is for starter homes. The majority of new housing construction focuses on higher-end buyers due to the increased cost of land, labor, and resources.

Despite record-high housing costs, Gen Z homeownership is surging

Many Gen Z homeowners have compromised on location and tightened their expenses to make buying a home possible. In 2025, 4% of homebuyers were Gen Z, up from 3% the year before.

Experts recommend putting aside between 1% and 4% of the home’s value for maintenance

Experts say homeowners should consider the home’s age and condition, and its location’s climate, when deciding exactly how much to put aside for repairs and maintenance. They also recommend setting aside more money for those who expect to hire others for home repairs rather than doing it themselves.

Mortgage insurance offers help to buyers who can’t afford to put down 20% up front

Buyers who need mortgage insurance end up paying more per month on top of their loan to cover the added insurance. At its core, mortgage insurance helps buyers purchase a home they can’t afford, letting them put down 20%, while protecting lenders offering potentially risky loans.

In real estate, a larger down payment can reduce your loan amount

However, the trade-off is liquidity: Tying up too much cash in a home can reduce emergency savings and delay your purchase.

The rare, so-called 'assumable' mortgage is landing homebuyers a 3% rate

High interest rates in a competitive market are part of the reason some buyers struggle to close on homes. But this rare mortgage can help. Assumable mortgages allow buyers to take over the original mortgage from the seller, giving them a much lower interest rate.

About 88% of all homebuyers feel their home is a good investment

According to data from 2022, 50% of homeowners felt their home was a better investment than stocks. The financial benefits of homeownership are significant: From avoiding rising rents to tax advantages, this interactive article outlines several.

The average monthly mortgage payment in the US costs 38% more than monthly rent

A recent study showed that the price gap between renting and buying grew in 38 major US metro areas since last year. The metro areas with the smallest price gaps between renting and buying include Detroit, Philadelphia, and Cleveland.

Housing prices have skyrocketed over the last 50 years

After adjusting for inflation, housing costs have more than doubled since 1965. And based on average incomes, buyers are spending more than five times their income for a home versus buyers in 1965, who typically spent less than three times their income.

Hawaiians must earn higher annual salaries than anywhere else in the country—roughly $229K—to purchase a typical home

This map of the US shows the annual income required to purchase a typical three-bedroom home in each state. This is based on a 10% down payment, a 6.65% interest rate on a 30-year fixed mortgage, and a 30% income-to-housing cost threshold, including taxes and insurance, according to recent data from Realtor.com. According to the data, Hawaii is the state where you'd need the highest yearly income.

The market share of institutional investors in the US housing market is less than 1%

Institutional investors have drawn negative media attention for their purported role in limiting housing supply and driving housing unaffordability. This report separates myth from fact in the nuanced discussion around institutional investors' role in the US housing market.

Over 25% of Americans regret using BNPL due to unexpected costs

Almost 24% of buy now, pay later users have missed payments, with younger users (32% of 18- to 29-year-olds) being more likely to fall behind on payments than their older counterparts. (Only 12% of adults age 60 or over had done the same.)

Some say a $100,000 salary can’t buy the American dream

According to a 2023 survey, 52% of Americans said they would need to earn at least $100,000 a year to be financially comfortable. However, for a family of four, that's not enough money to achieve the American dream (having a degree of economic security) in any of the 50 states.

What is the 70-20-10 budget?

The 70-20-10 budget rule dictates that people should spend 70% of their income on needs, 20% on savings, and 10% on wants. It's a new take on the 50-30-20 budget, which claims people should aim to spend 50% of their income on needs, 30% on wants, and 20% on savings. Learn more about this budgeting strategy by reading this article.

As of 2025, about 16% of US adults are 'smartphone-only' internet users

Demographically, smartphone dependency is greatest among those below 30, Hispanics, Blacks, economically disadvantaged individuals, and those with less formal education. Home broadband adoption is at 78%, with rates highest among suburban residents.

30% of Americans make New Year's resolutions

The practice is more popular among younger people: In a Pew Research Center study, nearly half of people under 30 reported making at least one resolution. The majority of Americans (of all ages) who didn’t make resolutions said they simply don’t like the tradition.

Why the $25K car is going extinct

The share of overall new auto sales under $25k was 4.8% in February 2025, according to the automotive pricing source Edmunds. That's down from 23% during the same month in 2019.

30-year fixed mortgage rates have changed significantly over time

In the 1980s, 30-year fixed mortgage rates peaked just under 17%. During the COVID-19 pandemic, they were much lower, hovering around 3%.

The Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta provides a monthly measure of home ownership affordability

Specifically, the Home Ownership Affordability Monitor shows a monthly measure of the median-income household's capacity to afford the median-priced home at the national level, the metro level, and more.

Shorting is a high-risk and expensive investment strategy that hedge funds specialize in

Most investors buy stocks with the expectation that those stocks will be worth more tomorrow than they are today. Short selling, known as “shorting,” a stock is the opposite: The investor is betting the stock will drop in value.

The price of gas is a composite made up of several different factors, with the federal gas tax making up less than 20% of what drivers pay at the pump.

Americans spend an average of nearly $500 per year on tipping at restaurants and bars

The habit runs contrary to economic rationality: Why pay more for a good or service you have already received when it isn’t mandatory? Researchers found that people tip, in part, to avoid the psychological pain of not fitting in.

Nearly half of billionaires plan to increase exposure to direct private equity investments in 2026

In a global survey administered by the Union Bank of Switzerland (UBS), 49% of billionaires plan to continue investing in companies by providing direct access to capital. However, only 37% of billionaires plan to increase their investments in private equity funds.

It's unlikely that we will ever live in a completely cashless world

Although countries like China are moving toward a cashless system, many other countries still rely on physical money for everyday transactions. This article dives into the future of currency and includes a map of the percentage of adults who do cashless transactions around the world.

One financial planner says FIRE is a bad idea

Some financial professionals argue that those following the FIRE (financial independence, retire early) movement might be basing their math on too short of a timeline, leaving them without enough money if they live further into old age than expected.

Massive 3D printers have been used to build homes by stacking layers of 'concrete toothpaste,' a fire-resistant material that effectively insulates against outside noise.

US consumers collectively owe more than $1T to credit card companies—almost as much as they owe in auto loans.

About 2,000 US babies are born annually without some portion of their limbs, potentially leading to a lifetime of pricey prosthetics.

Frank Lloyd Wright's houses are historically hard to sell because they're old, subject to local landmark commissions, and often unfashionable

Hedge funds, the private investment firms that trade a wide swath of financial assets, make money by imposing steep fees on investors and from the fund's investment performance.

Sears sold DIY house kits starting at $600 in its famous catalog from 1908 through the 1940s, resulting in roughly 10,000 'Sears and Roebuck houses' being built.

Researchers believe the brain consolidates memories, processes emotions, and plans for the future during dream states

The first steps to rebuilding your credit score include getting to know exactly what's on your credit report and figuring out how far you are from the '700 club,' or 'good score' range.

Despite being favored by 87% of Americans, Congress does not have term limits.

44% of Americans say they pray at least once a day—discover how your state's religiosity stacks up against the rest of the country.

Children are now three times more likely to say they want to be a YouTuber when they grow up than an astronaut, with some even attending 'YouTube camps' that teach kids how to create content for the platform.

Telehealth demand for GLP-1s for weight loss is booming as consumers seek easier access.

Use this tool to calculate the dollar value of your parental mental load, from meal planning to coordinating after-school care, then see resources that help generate solutions.

Doctors differentiate between a phobia and fear by asking patients whether their fear interferes with their day-to-day activities.

SpaceX's S-1 or 'prospectus' revealed many previously unknown details about the company, including its unprofitability despite doing $18.7B in revenue in 2025, exactly how many voting shares Elon Musk will have in the company (roughly 85%), and more.

Some coin denominations have ridges etched on their sides, partly to prevent counterfeiting, in a practice called 'reeding.'

Domino's Pizza's 30-minute delivery guarantee was responsible for the chain's 1980s surge, but it was discontinued after the company was found liable for delivery driver accidents.

Apollo astronauts left items in the moon's 'toss zone,' including golf balls, family photos, and bags of human waste, to make room for lunar rocks.

To reduce wrinkles in clothing, research recommends gentle wash cycles with more water and tumble drying with smaller loads and longer times.

Human-to-human transmission of hantavirus remains extremely rare, so the 2026 hantavirus cruise ship outbreak doesn't mean we're facing a COVID-style pandemic risk.

For centuries, Niagara Falls has been a magnet for daredevils seeking to conquer one of nature's most powerful wonders, with its 200-foot drop and water rushing at 32 feet per second with 280 tons of force.

The most expensive ad of all time was for Chanel No. 5 perfume and cost roughly $33M to produce in 2004—about $57M in today's dollars.

Most of the observable universe's volume consists of voids and supervoids—enormous regions of space with little to no galaxies, stars, or light.