The first half of 2019 surprised housing markets across the country: Mortgage rates fell. That’s the opposite of what the experts had predicted at the beginning of the year, and it is welcome news for home buyers, sellers and homeowners. Millions of owners could benefit from refinancing at these unexpectedly lower rates.
In other ways, housing forecasters’ predictions for 2019 were correct. Buyers are still competing for a short supply of homes, but the market isn’t quite as tilted in favor of sellers as it seemed six months ago. Home prices continue to rise, but not as fast as they have over the past few years. Many would-be buyers struggle with affordability.
NerdWallet has identified these nine housing and mortgage trends to watch in the second half of 2019.
1. Wanted: More homes for sale
In real estate, it’s been a seller’s market since August 2012. More would-be buyers exist than homes for sale, giving sellers a stronger negotiating position. While the market still favors the seller in most places, the balance of power is moving in the buyer’s direction.
More homes are available for sale now, so buyers have greater choice. In April, there were 1.83 million pre-owned homes for sale, an increase of 30,000 from the same month last year. Meanwhile, 327,000 new single-family houses were for sale, an increase of 33,000.
Even with thousands more homes on the market, there’s still a shortage of homes for sale. Freddie Mac estimates that in 2017, 370,000 fewer homes were built than needed to satisfy demand resulting from population growth. “Until construction ramps up, housing costs will likely continue rising above income, constricting household formation and preventing homeownership for millions of potential households,” Freddie Mac concludes. Continue reading this article Here
Source: Holden Lewis | NerdWallet | via MSN – Money
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