Real Estate Blog

What’s Ahead for Home Prices in 2023

Over the past year, home prices have been a widely debated topic. Some have said we’ll see a massive drop in prices and that this could be a repeat of 2008 – which hasn’t happened. Others have forecasted a real estate market that could see slight appreciation or depreciation depending on the area of the country. And as we get closer to the spring real estate market, experts are continuing to forecast what they believe will happen with home prices this year and beyond.

Selma Hepp, Chief Economist at CoreLogic, says:

“While 2023 kicked off on a more optimistic note for the U.S. housing market, recent mortgage rate volatility highlights how much uncertainty remains. Nevertheless, the continued shortage of for-sale homes is likely to keep price…

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What Buyer Activity Tells Us About the Housing Market

Though the housing market is no longer experiencing the frenzy of a year ago, buyers are showing their interest in purchasing a home. According to U.S. News:

“Housing markets have cooled slightly, but demand hasn’t disappeared, and in many places remains strong largely due to the shortage of homes on the market.”

That activity can be seen in the latest ShowingTime Showing Index, which is a measure of buyers actively touring available homes (see graph below):

The 62% jump in showings from December to January is one of the largest on record. There were also more showings in January than in any other month since last May. As you can see in the graph, it’s normal for showings to increase early in the year, but the jump this January was larger…

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What The Experts Are Seeing Heading Into The Spring Market

When rates fell in December after a steady climb last fall, the National Association of Realtors (NAR) saw an 8% jump in pending home sales that month.  When rates rose again slightly this past winter, the volume of home sales decreased as well, although historically the winter is a slower time in the housing market.  In response to the banking crisis, rates fell to 6.57% this week for a 30-year fixed rate mortgage.  You can read more here on CNBC.com.

Chris Devin and The Devin Group at Cross Country Mortgage are consistently in the top 1% of mortgage brokers in America.  He recently provided his insights on the rate environment in our current geopolitical landscape:

If you are considering buying a home this spring, I've put together a…

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Four Buildings Approved To Be Built On The Site of the Allston Skating Club

The BPDA approved a four-building project to be built on the site of the former Allston Skating Club that will include more than 500 condos and apartments.  It will also include commercial and retail space.   Additionally, the site will include an 11-story, 195-room hotel.  The project was proposed by the developer Davis Cos.  You can read more about it on the Boston Business Journal.

Contact me for more updates on this project and new development in Boston!

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Unique Opportunities At Winthrop Center!

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Danish Pharmaceutical Company to Expand Its Greater Boston Presence

Danish pharmaceutical company Novo Nordisk announced that it will be expanding its Research & Development operations in the Greater Boston area, bringing more than 200 new jobs to its Watertown, Cambridge and Lexington branches.  You can read more about it here.

 Novo Nordisk is investing heavily in the Boston area.  In November, they announced their plans to convert a 100,000 sq ft space into a state-of-the-art lab focusing on their RNA interference research.  They’ve become a huge player in this space after acquiring Dicerna Pharmaceuticals, also based out of Lexington, in November of 2021.

 With new jobs being created in the area, coupled with very low inventory, it is already promising to be an extremely competitive spring market.  Track…

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Balancing Your Wants and Needs as a Homebuyer This Spring

Though there are more homes for sale now than there were at this time last year, there’s still an undersupply with fewer houses available than in more normal, pre-pandemic years. The Monthly Housing Market Trends Report from realtor.com puts it this way: 

“While the number of homes for sale is increasing, it is still 43.2% lower than it was before the pandemic in 2017 to 2019. This means that there are still fewer homes available to buy on a typical day than there were a few years ago.”

The current housing shortage has an impact on how you search for a home this spring. With limited options on the market, buyers who consider what’s a necessity versus what’s a nice-to-have will be more successful in their home search.

The first step? Get…

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An Expert Gives You Clarity in Today’s Housing Market

The housing market has been going through shifts lately. That’s why it’s so important to work with an industry professional who can be your guide throughout the process.

A real estate expert uses their knowledge of what’s really happening with home prices, housing supply, expert projections, and more to give you the best advice. Someone who can provide clarity like that is critical right now. Jay Thompson, Real Estate Industry Consultant, explains:

“Housing market headlines are everywhere. Many are quite sensational, ending with exclamation points or predicting impending doom for the industry. Clickbait, the sensationalizing of headlines and content, has been an issue since the dawn of the internet, and housing news is not immune to it.”

…

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8 Steps to Buying Your First Home

Your home is the largest financial investment you’ll ever make, and the process to get to home ownership can be overwhelming.  With the right agent, it should be a memorable, smooth, enjoyable experience.  This article breaks down into some simple steps for you; you can read more here but I’ve given you a summary:

1.      Assemble Your Team:  You need top-notch group of professionals guiding you through the whole process.  Picking the right buyers agent is key – you might think you’re “getting a deal” going directly to the listing agent but chances are you’ll end up losing money when all is said and done and the agent, inspector, lender, and attorney are all picked by the seller’s representatives – so, in other words, a team who’s first priority is…

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Leverage Your Equity When You Sell Your House

One of the benefits of being a homeowner is that you build equity over time. By selling your house, that equity can be used toward purchasing your next home. But before you can put it to use, you should understand exactly what equity is and how it grows. Bankrate explains it like this:

“Home equity is the portion of your home you’ve paid off – in other words, your stake in the property as opposed to the lender’s. In practical terms, home equity is the appraised value of your home minus any outstanding mortgage and loan balances.”

Majority of Americans Have a Large Amount of Equity

If you’ve owned your home for a while, you’ve likely built up some equity – and you may not even realize how much. Based on data from the U.S. Census…

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