The rate on the 30-year mortgage is hovering close to 7%, a nearly 6-month high, per data from Freddie Mac out Thursday.

Why it matters: Higher rates are putting home buying out of reach for many Americans and simply turning others off from the market.

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• Though home sales picked up in the third quarter, even with rising rates, they're still hovering at historic lows.

The big picture: Mortgage rates move in tandem with the rate on 10-year Treasury bonds.

• That's been rising over the past few months, as bond investors fret over whether or not the Fed will continue to cut rates, and what exactly will happen once Trump takes office.

What's next: Most forecasts see mortgage rates declining a smidge in 2025 to around 6 - 6.5% — probably not enough to jolt the moribund real estate market out of its slump.

• It's never been tougher for first-time homebuyers to break into the market.
• Supply shortages, high mortgage rates, and skyrocketing prices are creating barriers to entry.
• Prospective homebuyers are downsizing, house hacking, or buying fixer-uppers as a result.

It might seem cliché to reminisce about the good old days, but when it comes to the housing market, things arguably were better "back then."

In the 1940s, for example, there was an ample supply of reasonably priced starter homes for first-time homebuyers. A starter home during that time typically cost between $8,000 and $12,000, or between $109,000 to $168,000 in today's dollars, according to Realtor.com.

Fast forward to today, where affordable new home construction has declined, mortgage rates are stubbornly above 6%, and the average home costs $357,469, according to Zillow data. It's no wonder that the share of first-time homebuyers in the market has shrunk to a historic low of 24%, while the age of first-time buyers has hit a record high of 38 years, according to the National Association of Realtors.

"There are a lot of financial barriers to entry for younger households," Danielle Hale, chief economist at Realtor.com, said in an interview. "As a result, we see fewer first-time home buyers. They are a smaller share of the market, and the number of home sales has been historically low in recent years."

Despite the tough times, there are some positive inklings for the housing market heading into next year: lower interest rates and increased inventory could be on the horizon in 2025. Still, housing experts are unsure if the market will significantly improve for first-time buyers in the near future.

In the meantime, first-time homebuyers seem to be making the most out of the circumstances and are getting creative with the following three homebuying habits.

Starting small

One of the most straightforward ways that homebuyers are reducing costs is by buying a smaller house. That's how Symone', a 32-year-old user-experience content designer who asked not to share her last name for privacy reasons, was able to purchase her first home in 2024: a two-bedroom, 1,300-square-foot single-family home in the Raleigh, North Carolina metro area.

Buying a house in one of the most popular real estate markets in the country wasn't a walk in the park for Symone'. Competition was fierce and inventory was limited, making it difficult to find affordable units, Symone' told BI.

"I would go to sleep basically on my phone, scrolling on Zillow trying to find something," she said.

Her biggest takeaway from the homebuying process was that she wouldn't get everything on her wish list. Symone' prioritized the urban location and made concessions on the size — her house is much smaller than the median American home size of 2,000 plus square feet, according to Bankrate.

"That's where I compromised on this house. I love it because it's a new build, and it has all the finishes that I wanted, but I definitely don't have as much storage in this house," Symone' said.

House hacking

When Tom Brickman bought his first house, he lived in the upstairs unit and rented out the downstairs unit to a tenant.

That was back in 2009, but house hacking, or renting out part of your home, has only increased in popularity as a way for first-time homeowners to get their foot in the door. The extra income from rent can help the owner pay off the mortgage on the house and build up home equity.

"I think it's definitely gained more popularity as things continue to get more and more expensive," Brickman said.

Danny Gardner, senior vice president of Mission and Community Engagement at Freddie Mac, agrees. Gardner believes that increasing living costs are leading people to become more open to nontraditional home ownership options such as sharing space.

In the twenty-plus years since Brickman's first home purchase, he's gone on to buy more houses and become a successful real-estate investor who provides coaching services to new homeowners. House hacking with two tenants was how one of Brickman's clients was able to afford a condo while working as a server in Los Angeles.

House hacking can provide a point of entry into the market, especially for otherwise prohibitively expensive markets such as Los Angeles, but Brickman cautions that it's not for everyone. Cohabiting with a tenant can create complications: when Brickman first started out, he encountered lifestyle conflicts with his downstairs neighbor and had to scramble for money to fix a broken furnace.

"It's inconvenient," Brickman said of house hacking, "but I could afford a much nicer house by doing that."

Buying a fixer-upper

Another way first-time homebuyers are combatting the rising cost of housing is by buying fixer-uppers. These houses are often available at below-market prices and can be a great deal — if you're willing to put in the work and money to invest in renovating.

According to Hale, fewer affordable starter homes are being built as builders have trended towards constructing larger, more expensive homes in recent years.

As a result, those looking to buy an accessible first-time home might not have a lot of new options to choose from.

"A lot of lower-priced homes are lower priced because they're older and could require work," Hale said.

Prospective homeowners might choose a fixer-upper due to lower competition. Brickman went this route a few years ago.

"I was just tired of getting outbid, so I took a house that needed more work than what it was needed," Brickman said of his experience buying a fixer-upper in 2022.

However, the lower price of a fixer-upper can come at the cost of the convenience of a new build, as it's difficult to accurately predict costs no matter how diligently you budget. Another one of Brickman's clients was hit with thousands of dollars of unexpected costs on a fixer-upper after an initial inspection failed to catch an issue with a retaining wall on the property.

The housing landscape is undoubtedly tough to navigate today, but until affordability improves, prospective homeowners are coming up with workarounds to get a piece of the American dream.

"Sometimes you have to get a little creative to get your foot in the door," Brickman said.

• "Neo-medievalism" is emerging as a consumer trend, according to creative agency Wonderhood Studios.
• The trend embraces medieval aesthetics and reflects a rejection of modern tech culture.
• Fashion, home decor, and mead sales are key areas influenced by neo-medievalism, per Wonderhood.

With Brat Summer fading further into the rearview mirror, it's time to look ahead to the next consumer trend set to sweep the internet. You might want to prepare yourself for a year of "neo-medievalism."

That's the key takeaway from a new report by Wonderhood Studios, a UK-based creative agency and production company. Wonderhood examines data from social media, Google Ngram, and other sources to produce an annual consumer trends predictions report for its marketer clients.

"The future is medieval," Jack Colchester, the head of data and insight at Wonderhood, wrote in the report.

Think cloaks and blacksmithing, all washed down with lashings of mead, the ancient honey-based alcoholic drink.

Colchester said the medieval trend taps into two prevailing consumer attitudes: A lust for nostalgia and the renunciation of an always-online culture.

"Neo-medievalism is the embrace of all things medieval in the face of growing rejection of modern tech-centric culture," Colchester wrote.

A growing embrace of Gothic and medieval fashion

There were hat-tips to medieval fashion on runways and major entertainment events last year that hint at the growing trend, Colchester said.

Take the MTV VMAs in September, where singer Camila Cabello donned a veil while fellow pop star Chappell Roan fashioned a sword as an accessory and later appeared in an outfit entirely made from chainmail. Elsewhere in September, actor Natalie Portman wore a chainmail-inspired Dior dress to the Deauville Film Festival.

In a similar vein, Pinterest predicted last month that "castlecore" would be a big trend for 2025, particularly in home décor and fashion.

Analysis of English-language Pinterest searches between September 2022 and August 2024 found a 110% lift in search volume for "medieval core," while searches for "chainmail necklace" and "castle house plans" were both up 45%, respectively.

Colchester said "Bardcore," referring to medieval-style music, has also steadily grown in popularity on TikTok in recent years. Speaking to this trend, the tech company Teenage Engineering last year released a beat machine that includes a library of hundreds of built-in medieval sounds, such as bowed harps, bagpipes, and frame drums, and effects like swords clashing and arrows flying.

The rise of mead

Mead is also having a moment, popularized by TV shows like "Game of Thrones" and with a growing number of commercial meaderies opening in the US.

Global sales of mead are set to grow from $592 million in 2024 to $1.4 billion by 2032, according to the market research company Fortune Business Insights. A separate report, from the market research company Technavio, had an even rosier outlook, estimating the global mead market would grow by $2.7 billion between 2024 and 2028.

In its report, Wonderhood also cited Google Ngram data, which explores language usage trends within books and other published materials, that suggests interest in mead is at its highest since 1887.

Colchester said mead fits into several trends among younger consumers.

"It's lower alcohol, chemical free, has loads of taste, and it's sustainable and helps bees," Colchester said.

Colchester said that the "neo-medievalism" trends — while somewhat tongue-in-cheek — point to consumers rejecting what he describes as hyper-modernity and pristine sameness.

"The creative benchmark in 2025 will be: get to places AI couldn't," Colchester said.

"In a tidal wave of algorithmic mediocrity overwhelming the internet, the only way to stand out is to embrace being an unashamed attention seeker — and boldly step into your neo-medieval jester era," he added.

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Gypsy Rose Blanchard has shared an update on how she’s adapting to her new role as a mom.

Blanchard, 33, posted a photo of her postpartum body via her Instagram Story on Friday, January 3 just one week after welcoming her daughter.

“Almost a week postpartum,” Blanchard captioned the post. “Feeling more energized.”

Blanchard and her partner, Ken Urker, welcomed a baby girl named Aurora on Saturday, December 28. Following the birth, Urker took to social media to announce the news via Instagram on Wednesday, January 1.

Gypsy Rose Blanchard Gives Birth on Anniversary of Prison Release Date

“Welcoming 2025 with the greatest gift of all ,” Urker shared alongside a photo of him, Blanchard and their new baby in the hospital.

The birth took place in Blanchard’s home state of Louisiana. “Aurora is healthy and we are so happy,” Urker told TMZ.

One year before her daughter’s arrival, Blanchard was released after serving nearly nine years in prison. In 2016, she pleaded guilty to second-degree murder in the death of her mother, Clauddine “Dee Dee” Blanchard.

Nicholas Godejohn, Gypsy’s boyfriend at the time, conspired to kill Dee Dee with Gypsy, with Godejohn ultimately stabbing her to death. Godejohn pleaded guilty to first-degree murder and was sentenced to life in prison.

Dee Dee is widely believed to have suffered from Munchausen syndrome by proxy, defined by the Cleveland Clinic as “a mental health condition where you pretend that someone within your care is sick when they aren’t.” Throughout her childhood, Gypsy was convinced that she had various ailments, including leukemia, muscular dystrophy and brain damage, and was told that she required a feeding tube and a wheelchair.

The 2017 documentary Mommy Dead and Dearest and the 2019 Hulu limited series The Act, in which Gypsy was played by actress Joey King, both depicted the saga.

Gypsy and Urker previously got engaged in 2018 while she was still in prison. The couple split in 2019 and Gypsy later tied the knot with Ryan Anderson in July 2022 while she was behind bars. Their nuptials involved a small ceremony with no guests.

Gypsy Rose Blanchard Is Pregnant With Her 1st Baby After Prison Release

Shortly after she was released in December 2023, Gypsy announced she and Anderson had split. She officially filed for divorce from Anderson in March 2024.

Four months later, Gypsy confirmed speculation that she was pregnant with Urker.

“I know the rumors have been flying around for quite some time now, and I’m happy to announce that I am 11 weeks pregnant,” she said in a YouTube video in July 2024. “Ken and I are expecting our very first child come January 2025.”

Actor said she didn’t understand ‘how much life changes your voice’

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© Getty Images

• The US Surgeon General issued a report warning alcohol is associated with cancer.
• He cited 4 recent studies to make his case that alcohol should have warning labels like cigarettes.
• Some scientists disagree: Another major report, published in December, found alcohol has benefits.

Dr. Vivek Murthy, the U.S. Surgeon General, said Americans need to know there's a link between alcohol and cancer, citing four recent studies.

Murthy said all alcoholic beverages should have cancer warning labels on them, a measure Congress would have to design and approve.

In a new report, published January 3, Murthy outlined the research that persuaded him — and other medical professionals — that alcohol is a serious and under-appreciated health concern.

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Here's the data that backs up Murthy's advisory, with some caveats:

How alcohol causes cancer

There are four ways alcohol causes cancer, Murthy said, citing a 2021 Nutrients study.

The first two are widely accepted, he wrote. Most physicians agree that when alcohol breaks down in the body it can bind to DNA, damaging cells and fueling tumors. There is also robust evidence that alcohol can drive inflammation, which is linked to cancer.

The study points to newer research that suggests alcohol may influence hormones like estrogen, paving the way to breast cancer, though it's not exactly clear how.

Another emerging idea is that alcohol seems to provide a literal melting pot for other toxins. Tobacco, for example, dissolves in alcohol, which could make it easier for the body to ingest, the study says.

3 studies linking alcohol to cancer

To back up his argument for warning labels, Murthy pointed to a 2015 meta-analysis published in the British Journal of Cancer, which found "a significant relationship" between alcohol consumption and seven cancers.

The team of researchers from Italy, the US, France, Sweden, and Iran examined data from 572 studies, featuring 486,538 cancer cases. They compared the cancer risk of heavy drinkers with occasional drinkers and nondrinkers.

They found heavy drinking was linked to cancers of the mouth, throat, esophagus, colorectum, liver, larynx, and breast.

Murthy also referenced a 2020 study, published in Nature, that specifically looked at alcohol as a risk factor for head and neck cancer.

The research on around 40,000 people in 26 studies found higher-intensity drinking — consuming more drinks per day, and drinking more years in a lifetime — was correlated with higher risk of head and neck cancers.

The third significant study that Murthy highlighted was a 2018 global systematic analysis looking at alcohol-related deaths in 195 countries over the course of 26 years. That report, published in The Lancet, concluded that there is no safe level of alcohol consumption when it comes to cancer.

Each report has caveats. For example, the 2015 meta-analysis used varying measurements of alcohol and the 2018 study did not differentiate between drinking patterns, such as binge-drinking or moderate drinking.

Still, the studies are comprehensive, significant, and have informed many of the physicians who say that alcohol is a serious health concern.

Some scientists disagree

Murthy said he was motivated to publish this report because surveys suggest more than half of Americans do not recognize a link between alcohol and cancer.

The science on alcohol is not cut-and-dry, though.

Some of the healthiest people in the world — in the Mediterranean and so-called Blue Zones — drink wine daily. Researchers believe the social aspect of alcohol may have strong benefits for longevity.

Plus, Murthy's report clashes with a major report by the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, which was published in December.

The paper, which will be used to inform the new 2025 Dietary Guidelines, found that moderate drinkers have a lower risk of premature death from heart attack and stroke than people who don't drink at all. It also found an increased risk in breast cancer.

The Department of Health and Human Services is due to publish its own analysis of the latest science on alcohol in the coming weeks.