03/31/2026
For MASSACHUSETTS RENTERS
MassHousing will offer a 0% deferred first time home-buyer assistance loan of $25,000. This new homebuyer assistance option is available to borrowers earning up to 135% of the Area Median Income (AMI) As of March 2026, the 135% Area Median Income (AMI) limit in Massachusetts, often used for MassHousing programs, varies significantly by region, generally ranging from around $130,000 to over $205,000 depending on household size and location.
Enjoy this weeks Top 10 please...
1. Buyers, rejoice! Kind of. Sellers are slashing prices to attract buyers, with 1 in 5 homes seeing a price reduction across nine major metros in February 2026. These metros all had a price-cut share of 20% or more—led by Phoenix–Mesa–Chandler, AZ, where 28.2% of listings were marked down in February. (source: Redfin).
2. Say it isn't so … The 30-year fixed rate mortgage averaged 6.38% as of March 26, 2026, up from the previous week when it averaged 6.22%. A year ago, it averaged 6.65% (source: Freddie Mac).
3. Contracts ghost their owners. More than 42,000 U.S. home-sale agreements fell through in February, equal to 13.7% of homes that went under contract that month. That's up from 12.8% a year earlier, and the highest February share in records dating back to 2017 (source: Redfin).
4. Inflation plays its tricks. Inflation is driven by three factors: demand, supply, and expectations. Positive or negative changes in these can push inflation up or down. When none of them exert pressure, inflation sits near its underlying level, typically around 2% (source: Cleveland Fed).
5. Term of the Day. Treasury yield is the annual return, shown as a percentage, that the U.S. government offers to investors who hold its debt, such as bonds or bills (source: Investopedia).
6. Thanks for clearing that up. The Strait of Hormuz is a critical global oil chokepoint between Iran and Oman where roughly one-fifth of the world's oil supply passes daily, making it a key geopolitical risk for energy markets (source: Tabrasa).
7. Sorry, your card was declined. Americans' total credit card balance is $1.277 trillion as of the fourth quarter of 2025. That's up from $1.233 trillion in Q3 2025 and is the highest balance since the New York Fed began tracking in 1999, according to the latest Federal Reserve data (source: Lendingtree).
8. Finally, slightly less painful. Homebuyer affordability improved in February, with the national median payment applied for by purchase applicants decreasing to $2,061 from $2,070 in January (source: MBA).
9. Batter up! Local AAA baseball nights are back in full swing, with families and friends cheering under the lights, enjoying peanuts, popcorn, and the crack of the bat. (Source: Minor League Baseball Attendance & Community Engagement, 2026).
10. Far more money has been lost by investors preparing for corrections, or trying to anticipate corrections, than has been lost in corrections themselves — Peter Lynch (source: Trustnet).
