This story is the second in a four-part series. Read part one here.

U.S. house prices are out of reach for millions of Americans, and the Federal Reserve’s pause in interest rate cuts means that financing costs will likely dog the real estate market for months to come.

Affordability metrics show housing costs squeezing household finances, pressures made more intense by a long-term shortage of lost-cost housing.

Affordability in general was a top issue in the 2024 election, with dueling strategies coming from Democrats and Republicans about how to deal with it. Concerns about the staying power of inflation and uncertainties about the Trump administration’s macroeconomic policies suggest the issue — particularly in the housing market — could persist for the foreseeable future.

The median price of a new single-family home in the U.S. is about $460,000, according to the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB), a trade group for residential construction companies. Based on mortgage rates at 6.5 percent and current underwriting standards from banks, that price is out of range for about three-quarters of all U.S. households, the NAHB found in March.

Mortgage rates are currently above that level at 6.65 percent for the most popular 30-year mortgage.

Even houses that cost $300,000, which is substantially less than the median sales price of $398,000 for existing homes in February, are........

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