With 30-year mortgage rates above 7% and housing inventory remaining low in US markets, it's becoming increasingly difficult for first-time homeowners to find something affordable. While some housing markets have grown more expensive as demand remains high, other parts of the country may still hold hope for first-time homebuyers.

Zillow Senior Economist Orphe Divounguy joins Wealth! for the latest edition of Real Estate: The New Reality to share insights into the top-rated housing markets for first-time homebuyers who have affordability in mind.

Divounguy explains: "Mortgages are driving most of the activity these days... In March, unfortunately, mortgages started increasing again. We saw the new listings metrics start to ease again. In April, first couple of weeks, we see an increase again. So mortgage rates really driving what's going on out there. But there are markets where homeowners are less likely to be affected by the big swings in mortgage rates. Those are markets that are in places that are relatively more affordable. They're in the Midwest. They're also in Texas and Florida. The markets where the majority of homeowners don't even have a mortgage to start with."

Catch more of Yahoo Finance's Real Estate: The New Reality coverage this week, or watch this full episode of Wealth! here.

This post was written by Nicholas Jacobino