Big news today on the housing market as economists speculate that we've possibly hit bottom or are very close to it. Senior economist at Wells Fargo Advisors in St Louis said "It's a sign that housing is stabilizing, but it's too early to say that we've seen the bottom." - CNBC's article.
Read between the lines you'll see that foreclosure stats are still staggering. One in every eight americans is late on a mortgage payment or in some stage of foreclosure.
Sales rose highest in the West while sales in the North East were up 2% according to Bloomberg's article.
Chairman of the National Association Of Home Builders cites Obama's tax credit incentive as a lage contributor to the increase in recent sales. "The outlook for home sales has improved somewhat in recent months, due largely to implementation of the first-time home buyer tax credit and gains in housing affordability," said the chairman of the National Association of Homebuilders, Joe Robson. - From CNN Money's article.
You can't deny that sales activity is up and both buyer and builder confidence is up as well. With last week's spike in mortgage rates however, I suspect that the early part of June will start sluggish, however the second half will continue to be strong. Multiple bids are showing up again and our office, for example, today, is having a highest and best 3 offers submitted on a 3 bedroom 2 bath with a rare large private backyard, asking price $629,000 after 2 price reductions.
Highest and best: When multiple offers on a home have one final chance to submit their best offer while competing with others. This is usually presented in a sealed envelope to the sellers agent. The seller will then get to pick from 2,3 even 5 offers on their home. Sometimes, it's not the highest bidder that gets the house, but the one with the most favorable terms. *
Highest and best: When multiple offers on a home have one final chance to submit their best offer while competing with others. This is usually presented in a sealed envelope to the sellers agent. The seller will then get to pick from 2,3 even 5 offers on their home. Sometimes, it's not the highest bidder that gets the house, but the one with the most favorable terms. *
RE/MAX Gold Coast closed 95 transactions from 1/1/09 to 5/31/09. We're averaging about 15 transactions a month alone.
Bottom line: If you're in the market to buy a home, know that you're competing with other buyers as well. It seems that we're slowly going to be coming out of this buyer's market. So don't wait too long to make a decision if you find a place you like.
*Part of buying a home is knowing how to present an offer. In my buyer counseling sessions we will discuss how to do that.
Don't miss our free Real Estate Expo coming next week! Read and sign up here.
No comments:
Post a Comment