Chuck Barberini Real Estate

  Check Out This Weeks Newsletter A decade ago, first-time buyers made up a much larger piece of the market and played a central role in keeping housing demand moving. Their presence has steadily declined, and the impact is starting to show across every layer of the market. The National Association of Realtors’ 2026 Home Buyers and Sellers Generational Trends Report makes it clear how difficult entry has become. Buyers are taking longer to save, thanks largely to other rising costs, including rent and other must-haves. They’re also leaning more on outside help and making tougher decisions just to close a deal. Younger buyers still want to own a home. Half of buyers ages 27 to 35 say that goal alone is driving their decision to buy. First-Time Buyers Are Now Just 21% of the Market First-time buyers used to be the engine that kept the housing market moving. They filled the entry-level tier and created demand for starter homes, which helped keep transacti...

You’ve probably asked yourself lately: Is it even worth trying to buy a home right now? It’s a question a lot of people are asking. With today’s home prices and mortgage rates, renting can feel like the easier path. In some cases, it might even seem like the only realistic option right now. And if that’s where you are, there’s nothing wrong with that. But if you’re weighing the decision, there’s one part of the conversation that doesn’t get talked about enough. It’s what each choice does for your future. What Renting Really Gets You (And What It Doesn’t) Depending on your situation, renting does have some advantages: Lower upfront costs. Less responsibility. More flexibility to move when you want. But even with those benefits, a Bank of America survey found 70% of aspiring homeowners worry about what long-term renting means for their future. And that concern comes down to one thing: you’re not building anything for your future. As Yahoo Finance explains: “Paying rent doesn't b...

If you’re getting a tax refund this year, here’s something worth thinking about. That money could actually help you get closer to buying a home. It may not be something you’ve factored into your plan yet, but it can give your savings a nice boost right when you need it most. And whether your refund is a few thousand dollars or more, there are some smart ways to put that money to work as you get ready to buy. Your Refund May Be Even Bigger This Year Let’s start with the good news. People are getting even more money back in their refunds than they did last year. The visual below uses data from the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) to show the average individual’s refund is 11.1% higher this year: Of course, your exact refund will vary. But any extra money you get is a good thing, especially when affordability is still tight.   How You Can Use Your Tax Refund So, how can you put that money to work? Here are a few smart ways to use your refund when buying a home, according to Freddie Mac...

  With economic headlines, global events, and near constant talk about affordability, you may be wondering if this is the right time to move. But here’s what you need to remember. While recent events do have some impact on the housing market, they don’t take buying off the table. You just have to use a different strategy. Mortgage Rates Have Been Up Slightly – Here's Why After trending down for most of 2025, mortgage rates have been higher again for over roughly a month now. And experts say it’s a result of what's happening overseas and in the broader economy. As Mark Fleming, Chief Economist at First American , explains: “Mortgage rates have recently moved higher, driven by geopolitical uncertainty and rising energy costs that are contributing to inflation concerns.” But what does that really mean for you? Should you wait for everything to settle back down before you buy a home? The short answer is no . You don’t have to wait. Your Window To Buy Didn’t Close It’s true that a m...

Check Out This Weeks Newsletter Best Interest Financial and Clever Real Estate survey shows 35% of sub-6% homeowners won’t sell, 47% can’t afford today’s rates, and inventory remains stuck. One in three homeowners with a rate under 6% say they wouldn’t give it up for  any  reason. It’s not just your imagination. Plenty of sellers still have rates below 6% locked in. And the majority of them? Not budging.  Not without a life-altering motivation, anyway. And sometimes not even then.    According to a recent survey of 1,000 mortgage holders from Best Interest Financial and Clever Real Estate, a large share of homeowners are holding tight to the rates they locked in during the pandemic era. Inventory feels tight. Listings aren’t showing up the way they used to. Even when homeowners talk about moving, a lot of those conversations stall out before anything actually happens. This goes beyond a simple supply problem. Mortgage rates and affordability pressure a...

“Just Thinking" I know it’s a cliché, but the older I get, the faster time seems to move. Only now do I fully understand the life lessons my parents tried to teach when I complained about being bored as a child. I remember watching the classroom clock crawl forward, where seconds felt like minutes and minutes felt like hours, each passing moment weighed down by the impatience of my youth. Time, of course, doesn’t slow down for anyone. Or, as Dr. Seuss so perfectly put it, “How did it get so late so soon?” It feels like we were just celebrating the holidays, Christmas blending into the New Year and yet here we are with the first quarter already in the rearview mirror. Winter has quietly slipped away, giving way to spring, which arrived with warm and beautiful days. We celebrated Easter just last weekend and are now enjoying the longer evenings that come with Daylight Saving Time, how quickly the milestones pass. As April unfolds, several landmark moments have already emerged, event...