Laurie Patterson, Realtor

5 Stats that Prove the Real Estate Market is Getting Stronger | Simplifying The Market 5 Stats That Prove the Real Estate Market Is Getting Stronger Thursday September 22nd, 2016 First Time Home Buyers, For Buyers, For Sellers, Housing Market Updates, Move-Up Buyers, New Construction Whenever there is talk about an improving housing market, some begin to show concern that we may be headed toward another housing bubble that will be followed by a crash similar to the one we s...aw last decade. Here are five data points that show the housing market will continue to recover, and that a new housing crisis is not about to take shape. 1) Mortgage availability is increasing, but is nowhere near the levels we saw in 2004-2006. A buyer’s chances of being approved for a mortgage have increased over the last three years; That’s good news for the market. This is not a precursor to another challenge, as many experts maintain that it is still too difficult for many buyers to attain house financing. As Jonathan Smoke, the Chief Economist of realtor.com, recently explained: The havoc during the last cycle was the resultof speculation fueled by loose credit. That’s the exact opposite of what we have today. 2) The Housing Affordability Index, which measures whether or not a typical family earns enough income to qualify for a mortgage loan on a typical home, based on the most recent price and income data. The current index shows that it is more affordable to buy a home today than at any other time between 1990 and 2008. With median incomes finally beginning to rise, houses should continue to remain affordable and housing demand should remain strong. 3) Home prices are well within historic norms. Prices have increased substantially over the last several years; However, those increases followed the housing crash of 2008 and national prices are still not back to 2006 levels. If there were no bubble (and subsequent bust), today’s prices would actually be lower than if they were measured by historic appreciation levels from 1987-1999. 4) Demand for housing, as measured by new household formations, is growing. The Urban Land Institute projects that 5.95 million new households will be formed over the next three years. Even if the homeownership rate drops to 60%, that would be over 3.5 million new homeowners entering the market. 5) New home starts are finally beginning to increase. This helps eliminate the number one challenge in the industry lack of inventory. And it does so in two ways: Some first time buyers will, in fact, purchase a newly constructed home. Many current homeowners will move-up (or move-down) to a new construction and then put their current home on the market. This means that there will be an increase in both new construction and existing home inventories.

Interest Rates Remain at Historic Lows... But for How Long? The interest rate you pay on your home mortgage has a direct impact on your monthly payment; The higher the rate, the greater your payment will be. That is why it is important to look at where the experts believe rates are headed when deciding to buy now or wait until next year. The 30-year fixed mortgage rate has fallen half a percentage point since the beginning of the year and has remained at or below 3.5% for the... last 11 weeks according to Freddie Mac's Primary Mortgage Market Survey. The chart below shows how far rates have fallen this year (on the left), and uses an average of the projections from Freddie Mac, Fannie Mae, the Mortgage Bankers Association and National Association of Realtors (on the right). As you can see, interest rates are projected to increase steadily over the course of the next 12 months. Interest Rates Remain at Historic Lows... But for How Long? | MyKCM How Will This Impact Your Mortgage Payment? Depending on the amount of the loan that you secure, a half of a percent (.5%) increase in interest rate can increase your monthly mortgage payment significantly. According to CoreLogic's latest Home Price Index, national home prices have appreciated 6.0% over the last year and are predicted to be 5.4% higher next year. If both the predictions of home prices and interest rate increases become a reality, families will wind up paying considerably more for their next home. Bottom Line Even a small increase in interest rate can impact your family's wealth. Let's get together to evaluate your ability to purchase your dream home.

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