REAL ESTATE

Third-Quarter Rates Reduce Housing Affordability: The National Assn. of Realtors said its affordability index registered 127.8 for the July-to-September period, down from 131.3 in the second quarter and 135.9 during the third quarter of 1993. The index peaked at 141.9 during the final three months of 1993 and began falling as the Federal Reserve Board began boosting short-term rates last February. When the index is at 100, a family earning the median U.S. household income has just enough purchasing power to buy a median-priced resale home using conventional financing and a 20% down payment. The latest figures show that half the nation’s families had at least 127.8% of the income needed to qualify for a house priced at $111,000, the median price.