Rents Continue to Climb, Makes Buying a Home More Attractive!
As demand increases, rents continue to rise, increasing 5 percent over the past 12 months. Meanwhile, the asking prices for homes fell 0.7 percent in that time, according to a new report released Thursday by Trulia Inc.
“Buying a home is more affordable than renting now in almost every part of the United States,” says Jed Kolko, Trulia’s chief economist.
The national vacancy rate for apartments during the first quarter fell to its lowest point since late 2001, according to a report by Reis Inc. Cities that have the lowest number of available rental units are seeing some of the largest increases in rents.
“A lot of people who were owners lost their homes in the bust in these places,” Kolko says. As such, many of these former home owners have turned to renting, which has been ramping up demand and driving up rents across the country.
Nationally, the median rent was $1,350 a month in March — up from $1,285 a year ago, according to Trulia.
Rents have risen the most the last year in markets such as Sarasota, Fla. (12.9 percent); Miami (12.1 percent), San Francisco (11.1 percent), Middlesex County, Mass. (10.6 percent), and Edison, N.J. (10.5 percent), according to Trulia.
Source: “Rents Keep Rising as Home Prices Stagnate,” CNNMoney (April 5, 2012)
Will Housing Prices Soar By 2014?
Real estate economists and analysts are increasingly optimistic that the housing market will have a dramatic recovery in the next two years, according to results of a new semi-annual survey of 38 real estate economists and analysts conducted by the Urban Land Institute’s Center for Capital Markets and Real Estate.
The economists predict that the national average for home prices will stop falling by this year and a subsequent turnaround will occur. By next year, they project that home prices will begin to rise by 2 percent, and then get a larger boost of 3.5 percent by 2014. The economists also predict that housing starts will nearly double by next year.
They also foresee rental prices continuing to increase for all property types, ranging from 0.8 percent to 5 percent.
The economists’ predictions were made on assumptions that the economy would continue to strengthen, including a larger drop in unemployment.
“While geopolitical and global economic events could change the forecast going forward, what we see in this survey is confidence that the U.S. real estate economy has weathered the brunt of the recent financial storm and is poised for significant improvement over the next three years,” says Patrick L. Phillips, ULI chief executive officer. “These results hold much promise for the real estate industry.”
Source: “Real Estate Will Rock in 2014,” RISMedia (March 31, 2012)
Bidding Wars Are Back, Agents Say
Some real estate markets are reporting that home buyers are having to pay more than asking price to get the home they desire, as the supply of for-sale homes has shrunk, Bloomberg News reports.
Bidding wars were a common part of real estate in 2006. But when the market turned from a “seller’s market” to “buyer’s market,” more sellers started seeing lowball bids than high bids. Now times are slowly changing, and bidding wars are being reported in several markets, such as in Seattle, Boston, Silicon Valley, Miami, and Washington, D.C., Bloomberg reports.
The inventory of homes for-sale is near a six-year low. Mixed with the low inventory, the job market has been improving and buyers are being lured to the record level of affordability in the housing market. Existing-home sales and pending home sales are up more than 8 percent compared to a year earlier, the National Association of REALTORS® recently reported. Trulia Inc. also reported that falling home values and low mortgage rates have made home buying a better deal than renting in 98 of the 100 largest metro areas.
“The housing crash is finally giving way to recovery in an increasing number of markets across the country,” Mark Zandi, chief economist for Moody’s Analytics, told Bloomberg. “The decline in unsold listings and vacant homes and the increase in rents presage better times ahead for single-family housing.”
Source: “Bidding Wars Erupt as Supply of Available Homes Shrink,” Bloomberg News (March 31, 2012)
Housing Is ‘Awakening From Hibernation,’ Freddie Says
An improving economy is contributing to a gradual rebound in home prices across the country, according to mortgage giant Freddie Mac’s 2012 Economic Outlook report, released Wednesday. But there is still a way to go in the road to recovery for the housing market, the report noted.
“The housing market is showing some signs of shaking off the depression-like conditions that have plagued it for much of the past few years,” according to the report. “As if awakening from hibernation, housing starts and home sales moved to higher levels of activity.”
In fact, the signs have prompted Freddie Mac to revise its forecast upwards for home sales and originations. One economic contributor that’s helping to stabilize housing: The drop in the unemployment rate to 8.3 percent, its lowest level in three years, according to the report.
“A variety of encouraging indicators suggest that the housing market may be feeling a nascent recovery … and more neighborhoods may see a stabilization in overall demand and housing values this spring,” says Frank Nothaft, Freddie Mac’s chief economist.
Median home sale prices are up, despite a slight drop in new and existing home sales, Freddie Mac reports. About a half of the increase in housing starts has been for construction of rental apartments in multi-unit buildings to meet the increasing demand, the report notes. New rental construction, at its current pace, is expected to reach its highest level since 2005.
“Housing starts continue to run below net household formations [and will allow for absorption of existing vacant homes],” according to the report.
Source: “Freddie Mac: Economic Growth Expected to Stabilize Housing Market,” Dow Jones Newswires (March 28, 2012)
How Involved Should Sellers be in a Property Sale?
With competition high, sellers may be intervening more when it comes to selling their home, and it can cause personalities to clash.
Because it might take a little longer to find a buyer nowadays, some sellers are getting very “hands on,” proofreading every line carefully on the MLS and brochures, and questioning your every step, according to a recent article at The Philadelphia Inquirer.
“Sellers get particularly ‘brainy’ in terms of the value of their home, but the reality is that they may not be aware of all recent comparable sales, or been inside those comparables, to really pinpoint value,” Mark Wade, a Philadelphia real estate sales associate, told The Philadelphia Inquirer.
Real estate professionals say it’s important for agents to keep their seller-clients informed every step along the way and educate them about the market.
“Our job as their agents is to advise and to educate them as to the present climate and conditions,” says Marilou Buffum, a Philadelphia agent. “We cannot make decisions for our clients. We only advise and represent.”
The Internet has provided abundant housing information to sellers so they may have access to a lot, but it require some explanation.
“We are dealing with more informed involvement on the part of both the buyers and sellers, it still requires the REALTORS® to analyze all the data and summarize it in a way that provides useful information that can be utilized,” Paul Leiser, a real estate professional from the New Jersey shore, told The Philadelphia Inquirer.
Source: “The Seller’s Role: How Big Is Their Part?” RISMedia (March 24, 2012)
4 Questions to Ask Before Buying a Foreclosure Property
Foreclosures can offer big bargains, but buyers need to be careful that they don’t get over their heads in purchasing a home that may need more repairs than they bargained for.
Foreclosures are usually sold as-is, and homes that are left vacant standing too long can have a lot of maintenance problems.
Real estate experts suggest buyers consider the following questions:
1. How long has the home been vacant? Be cautious of a foreclosed home that has stood vacant for more than a few weeks or had its utilities shut off a long time. Marvin Goldstein, a home inspector for many foreclosed properties, says a home can deteriorate quickly when heating, cooling, electricity, and running water have been turned off for awhile.
2. How old is the home? Goldstein says that homes that are more than 50 years old may have a failing plumbing system or inadequate electrical wiring.
3. How does the home look? Are there broken windows, gutters hanging down, or damaged siding? “Trust your instincts. If the house looks bad from the outside, it’s probably worse than you think,” Goldstein told The Oklahoman.
4. Is there anything missing? Sometimes former owners remove anything of value from the home, such as built-in light fixtures, bathroom tile, water heaters, air-conditioning units, and hardwoods, says Bill Jacques, president-elect of the American Society of Home Inspectors.
Housing experts encourage buyers to get a home inspector to look at the property, even if it is sold as-is, so that home buyers know any repairs needed and cost estimates before they purchase the home.
“Buying a bank-owned home gives you the opportunity to enter the market at a very low price level,” says Dorcas Helfant, a past president of the National Association of REALTORS®. “You can find terrific values among foreclosures, especially if they’re not in too bad shape. But, remember, these houses are discounted for a reason.”
Source: “Foreclosed Homes May Need Extensive Repairs,” The Oklahoman (Jan. 28, 2012)
5 Housing Markets Expected to Outshine All the Rest – Raleigh and Cary NC Are Number One Nationally!!
Inman News released a report highlighting metro areas that are expected to “outshine many other markets in real estate performance this year.”
In its report, Inman News scanned metro areas with populations over 150,000 to find where real estate sales volume is rising, job markets are growing, foreclosure activity is low, sales prices are appreciating, and home affordability is at high levels.
Here are the metro areas topping the list, including the third quarter 2011 median sales price and the percentage change in sales price year-over-year.
1. Raleigh-Cary, N.C.
Median sales price: $224,300
Median sales price change year-over-year: 7.3 percent
2. Wichita, Kan.
Median sales price: $120,900
Median sales price change year-over-year: 5.5 percent
3. Rochester, N.Y.
Median sales price: $123,400
Median sales price change year-over-year: 1.4 percent
4. Des Moines-West Des Moines, Iowa
Median sales price: $157,900
Median sales price change year-over-year: 0.8 percent
5. Chattanooga, Tenn.-Ga.
Median sales price: $128,700
Median sales price change year-over-year: 7.3 percent
Find out the other cities that made the top 10 list as well as more about each metro area’s real estate market and why it’s one to watch in the new year.
Source: “10 Real Estate Markets to Watch in 2012,” Inman News (January 2012)
My Contact Info
Marc Van Doren
REALTOR® and Broker
Raleigh Cary Realty
1151 Kildaire Farm Road, #124
Cary, NC 27513
Direct: (919) 302-8502
Marc@VanDorenProperties.com
