5 Cities Which May Become More Affordable If Trump’s Vision of a 50 Year Mortgage Becomes a Reality
Written by
G. Brian Davis
Edited by
Rebekah Evans
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President Donald Trump’s vision of a 50-year mortgage sounds great on paper for homebuyers, lowering their monthly mortgage payment and allowing them a foot in the door of the housing market. Except market pricing doesn’t work like that.
More buyers competing for the same homes could create bidding wars and allow other nearby sellers to ask more. “A 50-year mortgage would increase purchasing power, which generally pushes prices up by expanding the pool of eligible buyers,” explained Matt Brown, realtor at William Raveis Real Estate.
When buyers can afford to pay more for a house, they do — at least in high-demand markets. But it begs the question: would affordability actually improve in some other markets?
Phoenix
Some cities have expanded their housing inventory faster than their population growth, causing a drop in home prices. In fact, Zillow reported the average Phoenix home price has dropped 4.5% over the last year.
“Cities where new home construction can easily increase in response to demand are more likely to see sustained affordability,” Brown added. “Sprawling metros like Phoenix are a perfect example of elasticity in housing supply.”
Austin, TX
Austin could become more affordable for the same reason.
The city exploded in popularity during the pandemic and a construction boom followed. A 2025 report by Redfin found that Austin has seen the second highest surge in new housing inventory compared to pre-pandemic levels, booming 69.0%.
That goes a long way toward explaining why home prices there have plummeted 6.7% over the last year.
Denver
Wondering which city has seen housing supply explode the most since before the pandemic? Look no further than the Mile High City, where active inventory has grown by 100.0%.
Of course, that boom in new housing supply didn’t happen by accident. Denver home prices had stretched beyond local income fundamentals, which also helped cause the recent 4.3% drop in home prices.
“Buyers maxed out their budgets and home values shot up way faster than incomes,” explained Brett Johnson, real estate agent and owner of New Era Home Buyers. “If financing gets extended to 50 years, it may look like it’s propping up affordability on paper, but in reality it’s just exposing how far prices have strayed from actual local wages.”
Orlando, FL
The same dynamic has played out in many Florida cities, with housing supply rising faster than population growth. That could prevent home prices from popping, even if 50-year mortgages boosted buyer affordability.
Cities like Tampa and Miami have seen a surge in new home inventory. But nowhere in Florida has seen inventory skyrocket like Orlando, where Redfin reported it’s grown 44.2% since pre-pandemic levels. That ranks it No. 8 in the nation and helps explain why home prices have fallen 4.5% over the last year.
Cleveland
Cleveland hasn’t seen a boom in new housing construction. But it also lost population for most of the last 75 years and has only just stopped the population bleed in the last few years according to the Census Bureau.
In short, Cleveland has a housing glut and already offers incredible affordability. The average Cleveland home costs just $111,728, less than a third of the national average of $360,727 per Zillow.
“A 50-year mortgage might make the already affordable cities more affordable and expensive cities more expensive. They could encourage people to move to the more expensive areas where they really want to live, reducing demand in already affordable low-demand cities,” said Adam Hamilton of REI Hub.
Editor’s note on political coverage: GOBankingRates is nonpartisan and strives to cover all aspects of the economy objectively and present balanced reports on politically focused finance stories. You can find more coverage of this topic on GOBankingRates.com.
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