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Archives: July 2022

The 2022 Summer Housing Market

Key Takeaways:

  • There’s a lot to be excited about with this summer’s housing market.
  • Homes are for sale with the features you want, like swimming pools.
  • Our team knows how to help get the most for your home – contact us!

Despite news about a looming recession, high mortgage interest rates, and low inventory negatively impacting the housing market, many good things are still happening and worth getting excited about in the 2022 summer housing market. 

Some promising news in today’s historic housing market is that home demand remains strong, with well-vetted, qualified buyers making cash offers, creating a more balanced seller’s and buyer’s market. Additionally, home values continue to defy the odds and climb higher with no end in sight, helping your equity gains grow, which creates opportunities to put your equity gains to use that have never been better.

So, let’s take a deeper look at the 2022 summer market trends and help you figure out your next best step!

Upgrade to a home with the summer features you want

Senior neighbors having fun spending sunny summer day together outdoors, having a backyard barbecue party by the swimming pool

Maybe you’ve just returned from vacation, and you miss relaxing by the sea, or perhaps you didn’t go on holiday this year and missed out on getting to spend afternoons poolside or get to the ocean. Or possibly you’ve looked into getting a pool, or some other addition, installed at your home and have encountered supply chain issues. Regardless, there’s no reason to be discouraged. 

While housing supply is at record lows, it’s important to remember that historically, summer marks a lull in inventory that gets improved upon by the season’s end. This year is no different, with plenty of updated and newly-built properties available on the market, so it’s a great time to look and see if your ideal property that already has a pool or a pavilion is on the market right now waiting for you. 

Real estate is a proven safeguard against recession

Closeup house model over the Sale representative offer the house price list and condition for house purchase or rental on the working space table in new house

A shrinking economy marks a recession. People will spend less money on discretionary purchases, focusing instead on essentials. Companies may slow down hiring or even begin laying off workers to bolster their bottom lines. Stock prices may drop in the face of uncertainty about the economy.

When a recession sets in, the value of your stock portfolio may take a hit if prices drop temporarily. While downturns aren’t ideal, they can create opportunities for savvy real estate investors. If you’re considering investing in real estate during a recession or already own investment property, you need to have a strategy for maximizing your equity gains. 

Real estate can offer some stability for investors when the economy slows. Of course, a recession doesn’t automatically cause a drop in home values. But if a recession causes a hot housing market to cool off, that could open up opportunities for you to find your dream property at a discount.

It may seem contradictory to move during these challenging times, but remember, even with higher mortgage interest rates, there are always opportunities, even in the most demanding of seasons. What makes the difference is doing your research, knowing what you want and can afford, and most importantly, working with a capable guide before leaping.

Just remember: As with any real estate purchase, it’s not about right-timing the market but about buying at the right time for your personal goals and finances.

Let’s Talk About Your Real Estate Goals

Whether following local and national trends and guiding you through a shifting market or pricing your house right, a trusted real estate agent has the expertise you’ll want to rely on throughout your next transaction. So if you’ve been considering selling, let’s connect so you can have an expert on your side.

Is It Better to Rent or Buy Right Now?

Key Takeaways:

  • Homeownership remains one of the best ways to build long-term wealth
  • The cooling housing market is causing bidding wars for rental units
  • Our experienced team of dedicated agents will help you secure a home!

The Cost of Rent Is Rising

Recent reports on current conditions in the real estate market have highlighted a new trend developing in today’s heated market: rising rents. In addition to increasing rental costs, bidding wars within the apartment and housing rental market are increasingly becoming commonplace, with some offering hundreds of dollars more than the asking price. 

If you’ve been renting and wondering if buying a home instead of renting would be a better use of your money, the good news is that, yes, buying a house is still a better use of your money. So let’s take a closer look at what’s happening in today’s market and why buying a home remains the better option for building your wealth versus renting. 

Why is rent increasing?

According to real-estate company Redfin, the median U.S. asking rent passed $2,000 for the first time in May, and it has risen 15% over the past 12 months. While bidding wars have long been a staple of hot housing markets, where buyers compete with offers above the seller’s listing price, these contests are now becoming more commonplace in the rental market. 

Historically, rents have risen in step with home prices. As home values rise, renters become more likely to stick to renting, taking pressure off home prices and demands on the housing supply. The push and pull between these two facets of the housing market keep the two markets roughly in balance.

However, an increasing number of white-collar professionals are reluctant to buy because of record-high home prices, rising mortgage rates, and the limited supply of housing that is continuing to haunt the global housing market. As a result, many have said they are renting instead, helping drive a frenzy for leased properties of all kinds and helping fuel the trend of offering above asking rents, which isn’t helping anyone. Real-estate agents from New York to Chicago and Atlanta say they see more people making offers above asking to lease homes and apartments they will never own.

To rent or to buy? It’s not that complicated!

Happy family with daughter holding keys from their new home, selective focus on hands, closeup.

As anyone who has ever rented will tell you, when it’s time to renew your lease, there is an expectation that the cost of rent will increase. Usually, the new monthly rental price will rise nominally, and it’s not that big of a deal for renters to absorb the increase. However, in today’s market, nearly every usual trend has been upended, and renting is no exception. Yet as more individuals experience sticker shock as they renew their rental agreements, with some increases being several hundred dollars more a month, many have begun to question the efficacy of renting for their future. 

So as more frustrated buyers retreat from the market and steer toward renting, the savvy move to be made right now is buying a home. Homeownership remains a stable long-term investment despite the higher mortgage interest rates, because owning a home comes with certain tax benefits that renting does not, helping your money go further. Benefits such as deductions on mortgage interest, discount points, mortgage insurance, and property taxes will reduce your taxable income and help you keep more of your hard-earned money.

Another factor to keep in mind is that as the housing market cools off and bidding wars in the rental market increase, the price of homes is beginning to see price reductions from the seller’s side of the market, which indicates that now is a terrific time to consider becoming a homeowner. 

Secure Your Future

Serious buyers understand that waiting will cost them more later. They should approach today’s competitive market of rising rates and low inventory as a motivating factor to buy sooner, not a reason to wait. Let’s connect today to see what homes are in your budget, prepare you to become a homeowner, and start building your wealth sooner rather than later.