Home Sale Predictions 2021

home sale predictions
Home equity 2020

Given the performance of the housing market this year, can we make home sale predictions for next year? The housing market had quite a year!  It’s amazing how resilient the market is, which demonstrates the appeal of homeownership.  Even after a significant spring slowdown, home sales rebounded to record levels in the fall.  NAR’s Existing Home Sales and Pending Home Sale Indices for October 2020 increased year-over-year 26.6 and 20 percent respectively (nar.realtor).  Even as we headed toward the holidays, NAR’s November Existing Home Sales increased 25.8 percent year-over-year.  And year-over-year median home prices increased 14.6 percent. 

While some experts expect the recent housing market activity to continue, others question if this intense home buying is sustainable.  Making home sale predictions for the new year has always been predicated on recent trends.  However, 2020 was different.  Unexpected and unusual events occurred throughout the year affecting the housing market.  First taking a pause because of an economic shock, home sales made up ground later in the year. 

Recent trends suggest that home buying will continue at a healthy rate, as long as the economy remains relatively similar.  However, being an election year there is anticipation for change.  Even many economists, who are typically ready to offer their opinion, are ambivalent about the economy.  This may suggest that the economic outlook for the near future is uncertain.

A main factor to watch in 2021, is employment.  It’s a known fact that unemployment directly effects home sales.  In periods of increasing unemployment, home sales decline.  A 2010 Florida Realtors (floridayrealtors.org) survey demonstrated a correlation between unemployment and foreclosures.  There is no coincidence that home sales strongly rebounded along with employment and the economy.  If employment remains stable into 2021, home sales will continue to over-perform. 

Other factors that will drive the housing market in 2021 include mortgage interest rates, home sale inventory, and home buyer demand. 

Mortgage rates have been relatively low since 2008.  At that time, rates hovered in the low 4’s, and were though to be “historically low.”  Also, consider that mortgage rates were in the 18 percent range during the early 1980’s.  Even during the go-go market of 2005-2006, rates hovered in the 6 percent range.  But the most recent mortgage interest rate average of 2.66 percent for a 30-year-fixed rate is described as “another record low” by Freddie Mac’s December 24th 2020 Primary Mortgage Market Survey (freddiemac.com).  If mortgage rates remain low, home buyers will be incentivized to buy homes.

Another after-effect of the Great Recession, which continues today, is low home sale inventory.  The Great Recession changed how consumers thought of housing.  Since 2008, home owners have remained in their homes much longer.  Many growing families make due with smaller spaces, rather than moving-up to a larger home.  Many older home owners are deciding to “age in place,” in lieu of down-sizing.  And telecommuting is outpacing job relocation.  Home sale inventory of non-distressed properties will continue to remain low through 2021.

There is always “home buyer demand.”  Meaning there are always active home buyers.  However, the strength of the demand varies.  Home buyer demand is typically gauged in hindsight through home sales and pending home sales.  When you combine housing stats with other factors, such as employment, economy, and mortgage rates you can estimate the strength of future home buyer demand.  If economic factors remain stable, home buyer demand will continue to be strong in 2021. 

Original published at https://dankrell.com/blog/2020/12/27/home-sale-predictions-2021/

By Dan Krell
Copyright © 2020

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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.

Holiday Home Selling

holiday home selling
Home staging during the holidays (infgraphic from nar.realtor).

Conventional real estate wisdom used to be that timing the market was the key to listing your home for sale.  Most home sellers tried to aim for the spring and early summer months to sell their homes.  In fact, June continues to be when most settlements occur.  However, selling strategies have changed over the last few years such that home sellers are confidently listing in the fall.  Many also hold nothing back to sell during the winter months.  But how about holiday home selling?

The holiday season is typically when the real estate industry slows to a crawl.  But it doesn’t mean that the housing market is closed!  Consider that there were 658 Montgomery County MLS listed homes that went under contract since the beginning of November.  This confirms that active home buyers are constantly searching for homes, and will certainly visit houses that are available during the holiday season.  The only obstacle for home buyers (and your home sale) is severe weather.  

Holiday home selling is not for everyone. If you have not yet listed your home for sale, you may consider waiting to list after Thanksgiving.  Or you may just decide to wait until the new year.  Your listing strategy should be based on your lifestyle.  Although the holiday season is often synonymous with joy and good cheer, many experience increased stress during this time.  If the holidays are a hectic time for you, the thought of the additional stress of selling your home may sway you to waiting the holidays out.  Keep in mind that, like any other time of the year, you still have to prepare your home for sale (which includes decluttering, repairs and staging).

If your home is already listed for sale, you have some choices.  It used to be the rule that if your home was still on the market approaching Thanksgiving that the listing would be pulled from the MLS until spring.  And as of the November 1st, 181 county homes have been pulled off the MLS.  You may decide to do the same. 

But keeping your home on the market during the holiday season is no longer taboo.  As I mentioned earlier, conventional wisdom is passé.  Some home sellers see an opportunity to sell during the holiday season as many homes come of the market.  Consider that since November 1st, there were 444 new MLS listings.  There are also another 46 homes currently listed as “coming soon.”

Obviously, if your home is vacant it’s easy to show.  However, you should still visit the home weekly to make sure it is clean and shows well.  But if you’re selling the home where you reside during the holiday season, you may want to think about showings and staging.  Talk to your agent about requiring home buyer appointments to view the home so you don’t have inopportune surprise visitors.  This will give you the flexibility and emotional space to have your home show its best while you enjoy the holidays.

What about holiday decorations and holiday home selling staging?  According to Melissa Dittmann Tracey, writing for the NAR blog (Should You Stage Homes for the Holidays?; nar.realtor; December 19, 2011), most real estate professionals tell their clients to stage with “holiday-spirit and glow.”  Although thirty-seven percent of professionals indicated that they advised holiday staging without religious decorations, twenty-eight percent advised their clients to also include their religious decorations.  Only eight percent of professionals surveyed advised to do generic staging without any holiday decorations.

Original article is published at https://dankrell.com/blog/2019/11/28/holiday-home-selling/

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.

Autumn Home Selling

autumn home selling
Autumn home selling

What was once considered a winding down period for the year’s home sales, has become housing’s second wind.  Autumn is not only a time when the leaves start falling, but it also has become a target selling season for home sellers who miss the spring market.  Autumn home selling is also a second chance for those who could not sell their home earlier in the year.  In fact, the fall has become an active home selling season.

The general consensus for the autumn home selling phenomenon is that home sale inventory is low.  But the truth is that the fall tends to be when home sale inventory begins to decrease anyway.  Many home sellers who didn’t sell their home during the spring or summer will be pulling their homes off the market.  Sure, new listings are available during the fall, but not as many as there were in the spring.  Fall is a time for home buyers and sellers to strike while the iron is hot.  The combination of fewer listings along with serious home buyers and sellers makes the fall housing market a brisk selling time. 

This year, autumn home selling may be different.  Existing home sales have declined year-to-date (compared to last year).  The National Association of Realtors reported that as of June, existing home sales are about 2.2 percent behind last year’s sales.  Year-to-date Montgomery County home sales are 2.1 percent below last year’s sales.  This decline actually started last fall.  The home sale drop-off stifled what could have been a record year for 2018 home sales.

Autumn home selling

If you’re selling a home this fall keep an eye on neighborhood home sales.  Setting a reasonable list price will be key to getting your home sold.  Keep in mind that although home sale prices continue to climb, monthly appreciation is slowing.  The S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller Home Price Index (spindices.com) reported a year-to-date nationwide 2.29 percent increase.  You get a sense of the magnitude of decelerating appreciation when compared to 2018’s increase of 4.55 percent, and 2017’s increase of 6.24 percent nationwide.  The year-to-date Montgomery County average home sale price is about $554,932, which is only an increase of 1.2 percent from the same time last year (MarketStats by ShowingTime). 

Over pricing your home can be a disastrous mistake during the fall market.  Don’t be greedy, and be prepared to adjust your pricing strategy.  There are many storms brewing that can easily scare home buyers.  If the list price is too high, you may end up with low ball offers because of a protracted time in the MLS. 

Although having less competition makes it a good time to sell your home, it can also be challenging.  Fall weather can be significantly different day to day.  Be prepared to adjust the thermostat.  Make sure your HVAC system gets a fall service so it will be ready for colder temps.   

Don’t forget to keep up with your home’s curb appeal.  Although you may want to get lazy about maintaining your lawn, don’t let it grow too high.  Also, remove excessive leaves from the ground too, as this can also diminish your home’s curb appeal.

Make accommodations for home buyers to visit your home.  Many home buyers will probably schedule tours after work, when it will be getting dark.  Open houses are still a good option for a fall home sale.  Turnout may be scant, but fall open house visitors are more likely to buy.

Original article is located at https://dankrell.com/blog/2019/09/15/autumn-home-selling/

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.

Great time to buy a home

great time to buy a home
Should I Buy Now or Wait? (infographic from keepingcurrentmatters.com)

If you’ve been waiting to buy a home, now may be your time to jump into the market.  Maybe you’ve been wary of home prices, or concerned about mortgage rates.  Maybe you’ve been attempting to “time the market” to get a good deal on a home.  Regardless of your reason for waiting to buy a home, you shouldn’t ignore the current market conditions.  It’s as if a perfect storm of home buying conditions is lining up to a great time to buy a home.

The big news is that mortgage interest rates continue to drop.  National average mortgage rates have been declining since the fall, moving closer to the historic bottom!  The May 30th U.S. weekly average for a thirty-year fixed rate mortgage provided by the Freddie Mac Primary Mortgage Market Survey(freddiemac.com) dropped to 3.99 percent.  Mortgage News Daily’s Matthew Graham reported on June 3rd that mortgage rates dropped further (mortgagenewsdaily.com).  Graham’s title “Mortgage Rates Continue to Plummet” is telling.

Although economists express confidence in the economy, they attribute the movement in mortgage interest rates to the current trade wars and bond market activity.  The mortgage industry may also be anticipating a Fed rate cut at the next week’s meeting of the Open Market Committee.

Lower mortgage rates aren’t always a reason to take the plunge into the housing market.  But what about moderating home sale prices?  The FHFA Home Price Index (fhfa.gov) indicates that nationwide average home prices increased only 1.1 percent during the first quarter of 2019!  Compared to the year-over-year 5.1 percent HPI increase, the modest first quarter gain may indicate a more affordable housing market.   Locally, the Montgomery County year-over-year average home sale price only increased 0.2 percent, according to MarketStats by ShowingTime (getsmartcharts.com).  However, the average price per square foot decreased 14.3 percent!

Another factor making it a great time buy a home is the lackluster spring home sales.  Counter to what is expected, home sales have somewhat cooled during the spring.  A May 30th NAR press release titled “Pending Home Sales Trail Off 1.5% in April” indicates that national home sales have been declining.  In fact, the forward-looking indicator based on contract signings dropped 1.5 percent this past month.  The total pending home sales in Montgomery County dropped about 2.8 percent compared to last spring. 

There are increasingly more housing choices.  Although housing supply remains tight, there were about 2.5 percent more new listings this April compared to the same time last year.  Although many of these new listings go quickly, increasing new listings mean that there are more home sellers that are entering the market this year giving you more homes to consider.

Putting all the data points together signify a great time to buy a home.  Housing affordability has increased, partly due in part by increasing family incomes, lower mortgage rates, and moderating home prices.  Home sellers who are listing their homes for sale this spring are adjusting their sale price expectations.  Homes that have been on the market for an extended time may be an opportunity for you to negotiate a lower sale price.  According to mortgage experts, average mortgage rates have “plummeted,” giving you more flexibility and possibly lower housing costs. 

These home buying conditions may not last very long. But before you decide to buy, determine if buying a home is the right choice by consulting a Realtor and other financial professionals.

Original located at https://dankrell.com/blog/2019/06/08/great-time-to-buy-a-home/

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.

Home sale timing – sell for more

home sale timing
Timing the home sale (infographic from smartzip.com)

Everyone wants to know the future, especially when it comes to the home sale timing.  Home sellers and buyers want to predict home prices.  Home sellers want to know the best time to sell.  While Home buyers want to know if they’re getting a good price.  And apparently there may be a fairly reliable predictor to home prices, however it’s not what you think it is.

Several empirical studies have attempted to provide a methodology for predicting the housing market (home sale timing).  Of course there is the familiar of forecasting real estate through divorce and premarital agreements.  Back in 2013, the American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyer (AAML.org) issued a press release citing the increase of prenuptial agreements as sign of the improving economy.  The increase in prenuptial agreements meant that people felt there was value in their assets.  And this was meant to be a good sign in for housing market.

Of course there was also a spike in divorces that year, leading some to believe this to also be a good sign that people felt better about the economy because of their willingness to begin anew.  But as University of Maryland sociologist Philip N. Cohen pointed out in his November 2015 blog post (Divorce rate plunge continues; familyinequality.wordpress.com) the increased divorce activity of 2013 was a just a recession related “bump” and in actuality the divorce rate decreased in 2014.

Then there was predicting housing through internet search data, which sounds more like fortune-telling than research to be honest.  However, Beracha and Wintoki (Forecasting Residential Real Estate Price Changes from Online Search Activity; The Journal of Real Estate Research 35.3 (2013): 283-312.) concluded that, indeed, you can gauge regional housing trends through specific keyword search volume.  Given this method, I used Google Trends to look up the keyword “home for sale” for the Washington DC metro region – and it is bound to become a hot market in the next six months (maybe a Presidential election has something to do with that?).

But a better indicator of where home prices will go may be the availability of credit.  Most would argue that mortgage lending is a matter of housing demand.  However, a working paper by Manuel Adelino, Antoinette Schoar, and Felipe Severino (Credit Supply and House Prices: Evidence from Mortgage Market Segmentation; February 19, 2014) concluded that “easy credit supply leads to an increase in house prices.”  They contend that higher conforming loan limits and low interest rates benefit home sellers in the form of higher sale prices.

Adelino, Schoar, and Severino’s premise can be witnessed in hindsight as the pre-recession housing boom seemed to be fueled on easy credit.  As credit became increasingly available, home value appreciation took off.  Likewise, housing stabilized and home values appreciated post-recession as home lending requirements loosened.

Of course, many associate easy credit policies with recessions, and even the Great Depression.  However, it’s not necessarily the easy credit that precipitates the recession – but rather it’s the tightening of creditStephen Gandel (This is When You’ll Know it’s Time to Panic About a Recession; fortune.com; March 8,2016) said it succinctly, “Tightening credit doesn’t always lead to a recession. But every recession starts with that.

One may infer from Adelino, Schoar, and Severino’s research that a home seller can gauge their home sale price based on the lending environment.  Lower interest rates and loose credit points to a higher sale price.  However, tightening credit policies may point to flat or even lower home prices.

Copyright © Dan Krell

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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.