Homeownership is at the heart of the American Dream.
Unfortunately, in recent years, it has felt increasingly out of reach for many hardworking Americans. From high home prices to stubborn interest rates to the perception of needing to save for a large down payment, first-time homebuyers face an uphill battle, and many families wonder if they will ever get a chance to own a home.
New data confirm these concerns and suggests that it could take the average American household earning the national median household income of $80,610 as long as 26 years to save for a 20 percent down payment for a home at the 2024 median sales price of $412,500. That is a long time spent saving and watching from the sidelines.
President Trump has spoken about the need to tackle the housing affordability crisis head-on.
He has introduced commonsense ideas like cutting red tape to boost home construction, leveraging unused federal land for new housing supply, and lowering interest rates.
While these goals will understandably take time to accomplish, President Trump and Congress have already delivered a big victory for working families by restoring and making permanent the ability to deduct mortgage insurance premiums, which will put money back into the pockets of millions of taxpayers and homebuyers.
This tax deduction isn’t a new concept, but its return is certainly welcome.
Homeowners were able to claim it for years, until Washington let it expire in 2021. In fact, Americans previously used the deduction 44 million times for combined deductions of $65 billion. In the last year it was available, taxpayers received back an average of more than $2,300. For middle-class families, that’s real money — enough to cover monthly bills, put food on the table, or help with school expenses for the kids. Thanks to the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, that tax relief is now back for good.
The impact of this deduction can be substantial. In 2024 alone, more than 800,000 Americans purchased homes with the help of private mortgage insurance. Nearly two-thirds were first-time buyers, and many earned under $75,000 a year. These aren’t Wall Street investors — they’re teachers, nurses, police officers, and young families finally getting their foot in the door of homeownership.
Private mortgage insurance is a powerful financial tool for the working class, as it enables homebuyers to qualify for mortgage financing with down payments as low as 3 percent, meaning buyers can come to the closing table with tens of thousands of dollars less, on average. Paid monthly by the borrower, it is also temporary; it can be canceled when a homeowner establishes 20 percent equity and automatically ends when 22 percent of the original home value is scheduled to be paid off. After that, borrowers are no longer responsible for paying the monthly premium, leaving more money in homeowners’ pockets.
Importantly, private MI is affordable compared to other costs of homeownership.
While homeowners insurance and property taxes have climbed in recent years, private MI premiums have declined steadily. Public data show that private MI premiums have fallen by about 25 percent since 2017 — a stark contrast to nearly every other expense tied to owning a home. A key factor driving this trend is the industry passing on savings to homebuyers as a result of President Trump’s 2017 tax law. That means families are paying less for private MI today, while still reaping its benefits.
The American Dream of homeownership is alive, and it just got more affordable. The restoration of the mortgage insurance deduction means homeownership is now closer within reach for millions of families. It is a concrete win at a time when Americans are eager to see results from Washington.
That’s good news for working families — and it’s worth celebrating.
The views expressed in this opinion article are those of their author and are not necessarily either shared or endorsed by the owners of this website. If you are interested in contributing an Op-Ed to The Western Journal, you can learn about our submission guidelines and process here.
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