Wow - Homeowners' mortgage payments are a lot less these days.....

After 4 years of living in this economic housing downturn, there continues to be benefits for those who are in the market for new mortgages.  In the first part of 2006, mortgages represented 23% of a family's income - now the mortgage payment accounts for only 13% of monthly median family income.  Check out this article from the Daily Real Estate News...

Home Owners’ Monthly Mortgage Down About 40%

Daily Real Estate News | Thursday, November 10, 2011

Improving housing affordability mixed with low mortgage rates means that home owners are paying a lot less for their monthly mortgage payment than they did just a few years ago. In fact, they’re paying nearly 40 percent less on their monthly mortgage payment than home owners paid in 2006.
According to Fiserv, the monthly mortgage payment for a median-priced single-family home today is $700 — a drop of close 40 percent from 2006, when it was $1,140 .
“Housing affordability has improved dramatically because of declines in both prices and mortgage interest rates," David Stiff, chief economist at Fiserv, said in a statement. “Nationally, purchase mortgage payments now account for only 13 percent of monthly median family income, the lowest percentage on record (since 1971), and compared to 23 percent in the first quarter of 2006."
Source: “Monthly Mortgage Payment Almost 40% Cheaper Than 2006,” HousingWire (Nov. 9, 2011) and Fiserv