Demand -- and prices -- are up across the country. It's definitely a seller's market. The median list price for a home rose to $228,000 in May 2015, a 7% jump from the same time in 2014. Homes are also selling faster, with a median time on the market of 66 days. That's down 11% from last year.

Unfortunately, the news isn't all good, especially if you don't have a ton of money to spend. That's because home builders haven't kept pace with demand, and many of the homes they are building are targeted to affluent buyers. Many other would-be sellers don't have enough equity in their homes to sell them for a profit. In fact, in the first quarter of 2015, 15.4% of mortgage holders were still underwater, meaning they owe more than their homes are worth. All of these factors are combining to squeeze lower-income and first-time home buyers out of the housing market.

Experts believe a small bump in current mortgage rates will only mildly cool the housing market, however, with most of the pain felt in overheated markets where housing prices are already too steep for many would-be buyers. However, because rental rates have been on the rise, too, it's still a better deal for many people to buy a house instead of renting in the long term, even if mortgages are a bit more costly.

In conclusion, it is still far better to buy a new home than it is to rent.

Happy house hunting!