(NewsNation) — Homebuying is still out of reach for many, but new data shows October was the strongest month for affordability in more than three years.

Thanks to lower mortgage rates and steady home values, a middle-income household would have spent 32.9% of its earnings on the mortgage for a typical home in October, according to Zillow. That’s the smallest share since August 2022.

The relief comes after 30-year mortgage rates eased to 6.25%, the lowest monthly average in more than a year. Meanwhile, the typical U.S. home value was roughly unchanged from a year earlier at $362,117, Zillow said. Taken together, those factors reduced mortgage payments by 1.8% compared with last October.

Affordability improvements helped fuel a “rare fall surge” in new listings and pending sales last month, Zillow said.

“The reaction to lower rates shows that buyers are ready to make offers when affordability improves,” Kara Ng, Zillow senior economist, said in a statement.

The sharpest increases in newly pending sales were seen in Tampa, Boston, Orlando, Jacksonville and Miami — where “snowbird” demand likely provided a bump.

A boost in housing supply has also helped affordability, with total inventory up nearly 13% since last year.

Still, any housing optimism needs to be kept in perspective.

Zillow’s latest affordability figure marks an improvement from October 2023 when middle-income households were putting nearly 39% of their pay toward homeownership costs. But it’s still far worse than before the pandemic, when that share was around 24% in October 2019.

At roughly 33%, median-income homebuyers would still be spending more on housing than the long-standing 30% rule recommends. The calculation assumes a 20% down payment, which is a serious hurdle at more than $72,000. 

And while mortgage rates have fallen to their lowest level in a year, they’re still roughly double the sub-3% rates of 2021.

Those cost pressures have helped drive up the median age of first-time homebuyers to 40, a record high.

The Trump administration has said it’s focused on making homeownership more accessible for younger Americans, even floating the idea of a 50-year mortgage as a potential option.