Mixed housing stats

mixed housing stats
Mixed housing market stats (infographic from keepingcurrentmatters.com)

This week’s National Association of Realtors press release (nar.realtor) sends mixed signals about the housing market.  Reports of sluggish home sales and slowing home price appreciation is not what you would expect when the spring market should be humming along.  But then again, mixed housing stats may be a vital sign of a healthy market in motion.

First, let’s talk about home sale prices.  The NAR’s report on metro home prices and affordability indicate that the average home sale price for the first quarter of the year was $254,800.  This is a 3.9 percent increase compared to the same time last year.  Average home sale prices in the Baltimore metro area were slightly higher than the rest of nation at $275,300.  Not surprisingly, Washington metro prices were significantly higher at $420,000 (a 6.5 increase from the same time last year).

The latest S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller U.S. National Home Price Index (spindices.com) is almost spot on with the NAR, indicating a 4 percent increase in home sale prices nationwide.

Affordability is always a concern when mixed housing stats confound the market. So, how much income do you need to qualify for a home?  The National Association of Realtors Qualifying Income report indicates the average qualifying income for a 5 percent down conventional mortgage is $60,143 nationwide.  The average qualifying income in the Baltimore metro area is slightly higher at $64,982.  However, because of significantly higher home sale prices, the average qualifying income in the Washington metro area is $99,137. 

The neighboring Baltimore and Washington metro areas highlight home pricing extremes in competing markets.  Many home buyers who work in the Washington metro area are opting for longer commutes to make homeownership affordable.  Others are opting for alternative work to not only lower their housing cost, but eliminate the commute as well.  Commenting on affordability, NAR’s chief economist Lawrence Yun stated, “There are vast home price differences among metro markets. The condition of extremely high home prices may not be sustainable in light of many alternative metro markets that are much more affordable. Therefore, a shift in job search and residential relocations into more affordable regions of the country is likely in the future.”

Although home sale prices continue to climb, the national home sale picture is another story.  The 1.2 percent increase in spring home sales compared to winter sales should be expected.  However, the 5.4 percent decrease from last spring is a disappointment.  According to MarketStats by ShowingTime (getsmartcharts.com), the number of homes sold in the Mid-Atlantic region decreased 4.77 percent year-to-date.  There was a larger decline in Montgomery County, where there was a 7.25 percent decrease in home sales year-to-date! 

Days-on-market is another fundamental indicator of the housing market.  And, like home prices and units sold, days-on-market can vary depending on the local market.  Homes in the Mid-Atlantic region are taking a bit longer to sell, as days-on-market increased 7.04 percent to 76 days.  However, houses in Montgomery County are selling quicker, where days-on-market decreased about 13 percent to 65 days. 

Mixed housing stats can confound home buyers, sellers, and their agents. But consider the analysis of David M. Blitzer, Managing Director and Chairman of the Index Committee at S&P Dow Jones Indices. He stated that that home sale prices gains have been slowing down until recently.  And although mortgage rates are lower, home sales have “drifted down” from their peak during February 2018.  Even new home sales and residential investment have shown weakness since last year.

Original published at https://dankrell.com/blog/2019/05/20/mixed-housing-stats/

By Dan Krell
Copyright © 2019

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Disclaimer. This article is not intended to provide nor should it be relied upon for legal and financial advice. Readers should not rely solely on the information contained herein, as it does not purport to be comprehensive or render specific advice. Readers should consult with an attorney regarding local real estate laws and customs as they vary by state and jurisdiction. Using this article without permission is a violation of copyright laws.

Housing market mini-cycles

housing market mini-cycles
Housing market mini-cycles

In a statement last year, NAR chief economist Lawrence Yun discussed the housing market’s recovery since the Great Recession (Realtors Chief Economist Reflects on Past Recession, What’s Ahead for Housing; nar.realtor; August 28, 2018).  Citing increasing homeownership rates and addressing the recent home sale slowdown, Dr. Yun believes that concerns about a significant housing slump are unsubstantiated.  Instead, we may be going through housing market mini-cycles.

Dr. Yun is not the only one pointing to affordability (home prices and mortgage rates) and lack of home sale inventory as causes of market disruptions.  But his statement is almost trite: “…even as mortgage rates begin to increase and home sales decline in some markets, the most significant challenges facing the housing market stem from insufficient inventory and accompanying unsustainable home price increases…”

Housing market mini-cycles and the economy

The housing market, like the overall economy, goes through cycles of boom and bust.  It’s been about eleven years since the last recession, and many are saying we’re overdue for another one.  But if the economic cycles, as described in 1876 by economist Henry George and modernized by Glenn R. Mueller, accurately include recovery, expansion, hypersupply, and recession, there is no clear phase to describe recent housing activity.  Instead, what we are experiencing is housing market mini-cycles.

Most understand the concept of the broad economic boom and bust cycle. But most are unaware of the mini-cycle that manifests as repeat periods of short-term growth and slowdown.  Recessions typically have broad effects on the economy, where as mini-cycles are are fast cycling and specific to economic sector. So, a complete housing market mini-cycle can last several months or longer and may not spill over to other sectors.

Since 2013, the housing market has undergone at least three mini-cycles of growth.  These cycles peaked with record sales volumes, only to be set back by months of sluggish home sales.  The causes of the housing market mini-cycles are debatable and, like a recession, clear in hindsight.  Of course, Dr. Yun and other industry experts are likely to be correct saying that home prices (affordability) and inventory are to blame.  However, there may be other reasons worth exploring as well.

Micro-economic factors are playing a large role in the housing market mini-cycle.  Take for example the increase in employee telecommuting.  There is an abundant research pointing to how telecommuting has affected the commercial real estate market.  These studies point to increased office space vacancies due telecommuting.  Companies are downsizing offices because of the reduced need for space as employees are working from home.  This trend is recognizable in real estate brokerages.  Real estate office spaces are shrinking as the industry becomes increasingly “virtual.”

Telecommuting is also impacting home sales. According to Global Workplace Analytics (globalworkplaceanalytics.com) “Regular work-at-home, among the non-self-employed population, has grown by 140% since 2005, nearly 10x faster than the rest of the workforce or the self-employed.”  Currently, there are about 4.3 million employees that work from home at least half the time.  As businesses are increasingly hiring a telecommuting workforce, workers opt to stay in their current residence rather than relocate near their new employer. 

Does housing market mini-cycles lead to recession?  Maybe the the mini-cycle is a brief market correction that helps avoid the broader effects of recession. Take for instance the three housing market mini-cycles that recently boomed in 2013, 2016, and 2017-2018. During these mini-cycles, home prices soared and home sales broke recent records (since Great Recession).

Current economic indicators (at the time of this writing in March 2019) point to a positive home sale season.  The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS.gov) most recent unemployment statement was 4.0 percent (which included government shutdown stats).  The Consumer Price Index remains stable (the CPI-U was last reported unchanged). Real average hourly earnings was reported to increase 0.2 percent from December to January.  And after a three-month decline, the Conference Board (conference-board.org) reported a rebound in the Consumer Confidence Index.  Given the winter housing slump, real estate may be on everyone’s mind again in this spring.

Original published at https://dankrell.com/blog/2019/03/10/housing-market-mini-cycles/

By Dan Krell
Copyright © 2019.

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Disclaimer. This article is not intended to provide nor should it be relied upon for legal and financial advice. Readers should not rely solely on the information contained herein, as it does not purport to be comprehensive or render specific advice. Readers should consult with an attorney regarding local real estate laws and customs as they vary by state and jurisdiction. Using this article without permission is a violation of copyright laws.

Embrace millennials for prosperity

embrace millennials
Generational shifts (infpgraphic from nar.realtor)

Montgomery County Executive Marc Elrich’s recent remarks about millennials and housing doesn’t just speak volumes about politics and elected officials, but possibly reveals the future of housing and business in Montgomery County MD.  His “slip of the tongue” opposing building housing for millennials was not taken lightly and received plenty of pushback.  To be fair, Elrich has clarified his statement and is making amends (hamzakhan.me/blog/2019/1/26/mocowatch-elrich-meets-with-millennial-activists) by meeting with millennial activists who reside in the county.  Elrich should consider it a defining moment of his tenure and take the opportunity embrace millennials and the businesses that employ them to address the county’s housing and economic issues.

Millennials shouldn’t be pigeonholed just because their generation is misunderstood.  According to the National Association of Realtors, millennials are the largest segment of home buyers.  They account for more than one third of nationwide home buyers (Millennials Want the ‘Anti-Suburb Suburb’; magazine.realtor; February 26, 2016).  Jessica Lautz, NAR’s managing director of survey research stated, “Their buying power is huge…They are definitely a force in the market. They are overtaking the baby boomers.”

Affordable housing is an issue for every generation, including millennials.  According to the NAR, eighty-six percent of millennials “believe that buying a home is a good financial investment.”  However, like all home buyers, millennials are facing low home sale inventory, increasing home prices, and rising rents.  Additionally, many millennials have the heavy burden of student loan debt, which stifles their ability to rent, as well as save for a down payment to buy a home.  To put this into perspective, consider Zack Friedman’s report for Forbes indicating student loan debt approaches $1.5 trillion (Student Loan Debt Statistics In 2018: A $1.5 Trillion Crisis; forbes.com; June 13, 2018).  This makes student loan debt the “second highest consumer debt category” (mortgage debt is first). 

Embrace millennials to address housing issues

Millennials don’t expect cities to tear down older affordable housing to build new homes for them.  It’s quite the opposite.  As was reported by NAR research cited above (Millennials Want the ‘Anti-Suburb Suburb), many millennials are moving out of the city and opting to live in more affordable suburban neighborhoods. Instead of tearing down homes and disrupting communities, millennials are revitalizing older homes and invigorating forgotten neighborhoods. 

It has been established that millennials are currently driving the economy of housing, and they should not be dismissed.  According to the National Association of Realtors 2018 Home Buyer and Seller Generational Trends study (nar.realtor), millennials have been the most active generation buying homes for the past five years.  Millennials represented more than one-third of all home purchases in 2018.  It was pointed out that the number of millennials buying homes in urban areas is declining.  After peaking at 21 percent in 2015, only 15 percent of millennials purchased in an urban area during 2018 (only 2 percent buying a condo).

Embrace millennials to address economy

The millennial shift toward the suburbs is affecting business too.  Jim Fagan recently wrote about businesses chasing millennial talent (Millennials are re-migrating to the suburbs and their employers are following; westfaironlline.com; September 14, 2018).  He observed that as millennials are moving out of urban areas, their employers are following them.  Just as millennial migration is affecting residential real estate, it is also affecting commercial real estate and the urban landscape .

Demographics are not static and affect housing and the economy.  Millennials are a driving force in today’s housing and labor markets.  If Elrich is to address the county’s economy and housing issues, he should embrace millennials and the businesses that employ them.

By Dan Krell. Copyright © 2019.

Original published at https://dankrell.com/blog/2019/02/08/embrace-millennials-economic-prosperity/

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Real Estate Thanksgiving

real estate thanksgiving
A Real Estate Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving is a time to take stock and be thankful.  Although the original Thanksgiving may have had a religious purpose, today’s secular holiday is about traditions.  However, it seems as if the tradition of enjoying a peaceful meal with family and friends has been increasingly difficult over the past few years.  But since the election is over, let’s try to talk about something worthy of discussion (at least until the next election cycle begins), such as real estate and housing. Yes, it’s a “Real Estate Thanksgiving.”

Why shouldn’t we focus on something we all can get behind? There is a good chance that your dinner guests will include someone will be moving next year.  Whether they are buying, selling, or renting a home, someone at the dinner table will be affected by such issues as housing affordability, mortgage rates, and availability of homes.

Things to talk about during your Real Estate Thanksgiving might be about mortgages, home sales, home prices, rent, maintenance, etc.  The topics are seemingly endless.

Talking about mortgages during the Real Estate Thanksgiving.  The current news is about mortgage interest rates.  How high will mortgage rates go?  Housing experts agree that mortgage rates will likely be about 5 percent next year (although the Fed just announced they may hold off on interest rate hikes after spring).  Paying more interest on your mortgage may not be your idea of positively affecting home sales.  However, increasing mortgage rates typically moderate home price growth because of affordability.  Another silver lining of increasing interest rates is a stimulated lending environment.  As a result, mortgage companies will likely further loosen lending requirements, which will increase the home buyer pool.

Real Estate Thanksgiving and home sales could focus on the reasons for the fall slowdown.  Will home sales rebound this spring?  You’re probably aware that home sales have dropped off during the fall.  Major media outlets have grasped the news and created the meme depicting “housing bubble 2.0.”  You can’t really blame them because there are many economists who are projecting bleak home sales to continue through spring.

The main reason for a disappointing 2019 forecast given by many industry insiders is affordability.  I contend that this rationale is shallow and one-dimensional.  There is no doubt that rising interest rates and increasing home prices are on the minds of home buyers.  However, the lack of home sale inventory is a dimension that is often forgotten when discussing home sales and rentals.  The lack of available homes for buyers and tenants to choose has forced many into fierce competition.  The result has been upward pressure on home prices and rents.

You have to also consider the economy at your Real Estate Thanksgiving. The strength of the economy is an aspect affecting the housing market that many haven’t discussed.  Whether you want to admit it or not, the economy is the strongest it has been in decades.  Consumer outlook is optimistic.  Home buyers and renters have expressed confidence about their job prospects too.  Employers are competing for talent, influencing the highest wage increases in over a decade.

Commenting on the economy, First American chief economist Mark Fleming believes that the economy will be a major force in the housing market (How Will a Potential September Rate Hike Impact Existing-Home Sales?; blog.firstam.com; September 18, 2018).  One of the features of his analysis for 2019 is “It’s the Economy and First-Time Home Buyer Demand, Stupid.”  He described a pent-up demand from a wave of millennial of first-time home buyers who will be in the market next year.

Fleming explained that home sales slump during an adjustment period that home buyers undergo when interest rates increase.  The same thing occurred in 2010 when rates increased from 4.5 to 5 percent.  However, the economy was struggling at that time, and home sales were stagnant.  Fleming described First American’s positive housing forecasts overcoming rising interest rates, saying,

“According to our Potential Home Sales Model, the boost from the strong economy and first-time home buyer demand should overcome any downward pressure from rising rates on home sales.”

Original article is published at https://dankrell.com/blog/2018/11/21/real-estate-thanksgiving/

By Dan Krell. Copyright © 2018.

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Disclaimer. This article is not intended to provide nor should it be relied upon for legal and financial advice. Readers should not rely solely on the information contained herein, as it does not purport to be comprehensive or render specific advice. Readers should consult with an attorney regarding local real estate laws and customs as they vary by state and jurisdiction. Using this article without permission is a violation of copyright laws.

Buyer and seller attitudes about real estate market

Economists are officially pessimistic about the housing market.  This is the general sentiment following another month of declining home sales.  Experts are pointing to a number of factors for the slowdown, including increased interest rates and housing affordability.  But what are home buyer and seller attitudes about real estate? The National Association of Realtors’ most recent Housing Opportunities and Market Experience survey hints at a busy spring!

Economic attitudes about real estate market

attitudes about real estate
Attitudes about real estate market (infographic from nar.realtor)

An October 19th NAR news release (nar.realtor) reported that September’s home sales were the weakest in several years.  The nationwide trend affected all regions.  NAR chief economist Lawrence Yun stated:

This is the lowest existing home sales level since November 2015…A decade’s high mortgage rates are preventing consumers from making quick decisions on home purchases. All the while, affordable home listings remain low, continuing to spur underperforming sales activity across the country.”

First-time-home-buyers are finding the housing market increasingly challenging.  This segment’s participation needs to be strong for a healthy home sales.  September’s low thirty-two percent first-time-home-buyer participation is attributed to rising interest rates and home prices.

But low housing inventory is also an issue.  September’s housing inventory decreased to 1.88 million existing homes available for sale (from the 1.91 available during the previous month).  NAR President Elizabeth Mendenhall stated:

“Despite small month over month increases, the share of first-time buyers in the market continues to underwhelm because there are simply not enough listings in their price range.”

Economists at Fannie Mae believe that the housing market will continue to disappoint.  In an October 18th press release (fanniemae.com) Fannie Mae Chief Economist Doug Duncan stated:

“Our expectations for housing have become more pessimistic. Rising interest rates and declining housing sentiment from both consumers and lenders led us to lower our home sales forecast over the duration of 2018 and through 2019. Meanwhile, affordability, especially for first-time homebuyers, remains atop the list of challenges facing the housing market.”

But what do economists really know about the future?  Let’s hear it directly from the consumer!

Home buyer and seller attitudes about real estate

NAR’s Housing Opportunities and Market Experience survey tracks opinions from renters and homeowners about homeownership, economy, and the housing market.  The release of their third quarter 2018 survey indicates that sixty-three percent of respondents strongly or moderately believe that it’s a good time to buy a home.  Although optimism is somewhat diminished from the second quarter’s survey, there continues to be a positive sentiment about buying a home.  The survey’s positive sentiment continues even though a majority of respondents believed that home prices will continue to increase in the immediate six months.  Additionally, a majority of respondents believe that qualifying for a mortgage may be an obstacle to a home purchase.

The survey also concurs with other metrics indicating high consumer sentiment for the economy.  In light of the recent slide in home sales, NAR’s recent Housing Opportunities and Market Experience survey reveals a near-record high of sixty percent of households believe that the economy is improving.”  Adding to the strong sentiment is the survey’s increased monthly Personal Financial Outlook Index, which indicates that respondents believe that their financial situation will be better in six months.

The survey also indicates a record high of home sellers who believe it is a good time to sell a home.  But given the seasonal decline of housing inventory, it is likely this will translate to a surge of home listings in the spring.  The added inventory combined with high consumer sentiment will boost the housing market. So sayeth the consumer.

By Dan Krell    
Copyright © 2018.

Original located at https://dankrell.com/blog/2018/11/01/attitudes-real-estate-market/

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Disclaimer. This article is not intended to provide nor should it be relied upon for legal and financial advice. Readers should not rely solely on the information contained herein, as it does not purport to be comprehensive or render specific advice. Readers should consult with an attorney regarding local real estate laws and customs as they vary by state and jurisdiction. Using this article without permission is a violation of copyright laws.