National Association of Realtors Chief Economist, Lawrence Yun recently shared his take on this market that is anything but ‘normal.’
After deep sales declines the last two years he predicts the market will pick up moderately in 2024, and anticipates mortgage rates under 7% driving up existing home sales 13% and new home sales 19%.
Yun pointed out that many homeowners are upbeat because lack of inventory continues to buoy home prices. A new survey shows median net worth of homeowners was $396,200, a 34% increase from 2019, before the pandemic. Even renters showed a 30% increase in net worth.
Competition is still there for listings that are ‘perfect’, but homes must be priced right or they will sit on the market. Buyers are having inspections again and asking for concessions such as closing costs or an interest-rate buydown.
Some homeowners don’t want to move because they don’t want to give up their low mortgage interest rates, and many longtime owners don’t want to move because strong price gains have caused their home values to exceed the federal capital gains tax exclusion.
Who is buying?
A recent report from the National Association of Realtors confirms that home affordability is in the gutter.
- Average income of a homebuyer between July 2022 and June 2023 was $107,000
- More and more homebuyers are single women
- Share of single women buying homes is almost double that of men
- A single woman buying her first home is 38 years old on average
- A single man buying a first home is 33 on average
- Buyers are older
- Average first-time homebuyer is 35… in the 1980s it was 29
- Median age of a repeat homebuyer last year was 58… in 1981 it was 36
Sharlene Hensrud, RE/MAX Results – shensrud@homesmsp.com
