It’s no secret that the housing market has been declining for the past years, with home prices and affordability experiences tremendous slide, making people favor renting and homebuyers to stay in cash and postpone any plans of buying a new house. In general, we can say that experts and investors alike are bearish in the real estate market despite the fact that the U.S economy was stable.
This year, there are still experts who are weighing their options as to what the 2019 housing market brings, and Kathy Orton in her article at The Washington Post also sharing the same sentiment. Read the article below to know more.
Experts Weigh in on What the 2019 Housing Market Will Bring
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A year ago, several experts predicted the new tax law would cause a slowdown in the housing market. So far, the limitations on mortgage-interest and property-tax deductions haven’t had a negative impact. Instead, rising mortgage rates and home prices are doing more to put a damper on the market.
Economic uncertainty brought on by global trade tensions, stock market volatility and the government shutdown also isn’t helping. In this environment, potential home buyers can be reluctant to make a large purchase such as a house. The last sustained government shutdown in 2013 saw a slump in home sales.
It is too soon to tell whether the recent decline is a temporary lull or a major pullback.
In their forecasts for 2019, real estate experts anticipate the housing market slowing down, but not stalling, with prices and mortgage rates moderating.
“If mortgage rates trend sideways next year, as we anticipate, and home price appreciation continues to moderate, improving affordability should breathe some life into the housing market,” said Doug G. Duncan, chief economist at Fannie Mae.
Below is a snapshot of what housing experts are forecasting for 2019.
National Association of Realtors
The National Association of Realtors expects home sales to flatten and home prices to continue to increase, though at a slower pace.
“The forecast for home sales will be very boring — meaning stable,” said Lawrence Yun, NAR chief economist.
NAR expects sales to increase 1 percent to about 5.4 million and the median home price to rise 3.1 percent to around $266,800 in 2019, and $274,000 in 2020.
“Home-price appreciation will slow down,” Yun said. “The days of easy price gains are coming to an end, but prices will continue to rise.” See full post here…
Also in the same forecast, real estate experts anticipate the housing market to be at least slowing down, but not stalling due to house prices and mortgages in the moderate side. Another important thing to note is that the forecast for the housing market and home buying will be very boring and stable. To sum it up, housing market prices won’t go up that much at least in the next couple of months.
Janna Herron also shared her forecast and how she looks at the real estate market, as well as what to expect from a home sale in 2019. Check out the article below from USA Today and learn more.
5 Housing Takeways: What Should You Expect From Home Sales in 2019?
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Still, some cash-strapped first-time buyers will simply be priced out, while a cohort of potential move-up buyers will decide to stay in their existing home, make renovations and enjoy their current low mortgage rate. Price increases will moderate, and everyone in the market will need to adjust.
Finally, more homes to choose from
One of the biggest complaints among buyers in the last several years is that there weren’t enough homes for sale. In fact, the supply of houses hit historic lows in the winter of 2017 and has yet to rebound substantially. That fueled bidding wars, price increases and frustration.
The supply crunch is expected to ease some in 2019 with inventory rising 10 percent to 15 percent, according to Yun. But the increase will be skewed toward the mid-to-high end of the market – houses priced $250,000 and higher – especially when it comes to newly built houses, said Danielle Hale, chief economist of realtor.com.
That’s good news for move-up buyers, but not so much for the first-time millennial buyer. “There’s still a mismatch on the entry-level side,” she said.
Houses in all shapes and sizes
If you’re a first-time buyer, you won’t be completely out of luck if you stay open-minded. If a single-family home is out of the question, consider a mobile home or townhouse as a starter home, both of which are on the rise.
The volume of shipments for manufactured houses – also known as mobile homes – is expected to finish above 100,000 this year, up from 93,000 in 2017, according to Robert Dietz, chief economist of the National Association of Home Builders. The trend is expected to continue next year.
These homes are also significantly cheaper than other home types. Not including land costs, the cost to buy a mobile home averages $70,600, compared with $257,900 for an existing single-family home and $309,700 for a new home. Click here to read the rest of this post…
It might be true that the housing market has been on a downward trend, but this actually is good for home buyers out there. Some experts actually see this as an opportunity for those who are looking to buy a house. In an article written by Alcynna Lloyd in Housing Wire, this housing market slowdown could be good news for homebuyers. Read the article below to learn more.
Housing Market Slowdown Could Be Good News For Homebuyers
Image Source: Housing Wire
That’s it everyone, home price appreciation has officially slowed its growth for the tenth consecutive month, according to a recent report from Black Knight.
At this point, the housing market really shouldn’t be surprised, countless reports point to a market slowdown just over the horizon.
And Black Knight’s data further proves the slowdown is coming in fast.
“At the end of December, home prices at the national level had fallen 0.3% from November for their fourth consecutive monthly decline,” said Black Knight’s Data & Analytics President Ben Graboske. “As a result, the average home has lost more than $2,400 in value since the summer of 2018.”
“And while home prices are still up on an annual basis, the slowdown continues nationwide and, importantly, is not being driven by seasonal effects,” Graboske continued. “December marked the 10th straight month of slowing annual home price appreciation, falling from a high of 6.8% annual growth in February to 4.6% at the end of the year.”
But hey don’t fret, Graboske believes the slowdown could give way to an increase in home sales from many prospective homebuyers.
“There is good news in these numbers for prospective homebuyers, though. Combined with the average 30-year fixed rate declining by more than half a point over the last three months, housing is now the most affordable it’s been since early in the 2018 home-buying season,” Graboske said. “It currently requires 22.2% of median income to purchase the average home with a 20% down payment on a 30-year fixed-rate loan.” Learn more about this news here…
It is really alarming to see the housing market and real estate market is on a tremendous downside, but some experts actually see this as an opportunity for first-time homebuyers to purchase a new home. For these real estate experts, now is the right time to own the house of your dreams.
If you are a home buyer or is looking to sell your house fast, we at Dependable Homebuyers can help you in finding a house or finding the right buyer for your beloved home. If you want to learn more. visit us on https://www.dependablehomebuyers.com
Dependable Homebuyers
1402 Belt St, Baltimore, MD 21230
(443) 266-6247
