The Sun Belt is poised for the strongest residential real estate growth in the United States according to the 2024 Emerging Trends in Real Estate report, released jointly by PwC and the Urban Land Institute every year.

Based on thousands of surveys and hundreds of personal interviews, the annual report provides an in-depth real estate outlook for the U.S. and Canada. And this year, several cities stuck out as hotbeds for development.

Citing their demonstrated interest in urban growth, the report named 10 top markets to watch as we enter 2024:

1. Nashville
2. Phoenix
3. Dallas/Fort Worth
4. Atlanta
5. Austin
6. San Diego
7. Boston
8. San Antonio
9. Raleigh/Durham
10. Seattle

“It’s clear that the real estate industry is entering a new era of thinking,…

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If you’re worried about a coming recession, you’re not alone. Over the past couple of years, there’s been a lot of recession talk. And many people worry, if we do have one, it would cause the unemployment rate to skyrocket. Some even fear that a spike in unemployment would lead to a rash of foreclosures similar to what happened 15 years ago.

However, the latest Economic Forecasting Survey from the Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reveals that, for the first time in over a year, less than half (48%) of economists believe a recession will actually occur within the next year:

“Economists are turning optimistic on the U.S. economy . . . economists lowered the probability of a recession within the next year, from 54% on average in July to a more optimistic…

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When it comes to what’s happening in the housing market, there’s a lot of confusion going around right now. You may hear one thing in conversation with your friends, see something totally different on the news, and read something on social media that contradicts both of those thoughts. And, if you’re thinking about making a move, that can leave you with a lot of lingering questions. That’s where a trusted local real estate agent comes in.

Here are the top 3 questions people are asking about today’s housing market, and the data to help answer them.

1. What’s Next for Mortgage Rates?

Mortgage rates are higher than they’ve been in recent years. And, if you’re looking to buy a home, that impacts how much you can afford. That’s why so…

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Among job-seekers, Boston is one of the top cities people are willing to move to in order to find the best career opportunities, according to the latest report from Bank of America.  The analysis is based on the migration patterns of their clients across all their platforms.  Boston was the top city where their clients had moved after a job change in the third quarter of 2023.  Pay increase seemed to be the driving factor.  You can read more here.

Thinking of moving to the Greater Boston area?  My team and I help our clients buy, sell and rent at all price points - contact me to get started!

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If you’re thinking about buying a home, you may find yourself interested in the latest real estate headlines so you can have a pulse on all of the things that could impact your decision. If that’s the case, you’ve probably heard mention of investors, and wondered how they’re impacting the housing market right now. That could leave you asking yourself questions like:

  • How many homes do investors own?
  • Are institutional investors, like large Wall Street Firms, really buying up so many homes that the average person can’t find one?

To answer those questions, here’s the real story of what’s happening based on the data.  

Let’s start with establishing how many single-family homes (SFHs) there are and what portion of those are rentals owned by…

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Buying or selling a home is a significant decision, often accompanied by a myriad of emotions and uncertainties. In the complex world of real estate, one key player stands out to guide you through the process - the real estate agent. But what exactly do they do, and how can they add value to your home journey? Let's demystify the role of real estate agents and highlight the invaluable services they provide to their clients.

1. Navigating the Real Estate Landscape:

Real estate transactions involve a maze of paperwork, legalities, and intricacies. A real estate agent acts as your seasoned navigator, helping you understand the complexities of the market and guiding you through the entire process.

2. Market Expertise:

Real estate agents are…

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If you're thinking about buying or selling a home, you might have heard that it’s tough right now because mortgage rates are higher than they’ve been over the past few years, and home prices are rising. That much is true. Take a look at the graph below. It breaks down how the current affordability situation stacks up to recent years.

 


The National Association of Realtors (NAR) explains how to read the values on the graph:

“To interpret the indices, a value of 100 means that a family with the median income has exactly enough income to qualify for a mortgage on a median-priced home.”

The black dotted line represents that 100 value on the index. Essentially, the higher the bar, the more affordable homes are. As you can see, the orange bar…

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The new year is right around the corner, and you might be wondering if 2024 will be the right time to buy or sell a home. If you want to make the most informed decision possible, it’s important to know what the experts have to say about what's ahead for the housing market. Spoiler alert: the projections may be better than you think. Here’s why.

Experts Forecast Ongoing Home Price Appreciation

Take a look at the latest home price forecasts from Fannie Mae, the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA), and the National Association of Realtors (NAR):

 


As you can see in the orange bars on the left, on average, experts forecast prices will end this year up about 2.8% overall, and increase by another 1.5% by the end of 2024. That’s big news,…

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Rent control will not even be on the ballot in Massachusetts in 2024.  A years-long campaign to include a rent control question on the ballot for voters in next year's election cycle has fallen well short of the signatures needed for this measure, getting only 13% of the mandatory 74,574 signatures.  The initiative's biggest advocate, Homes for All Massachusetts, asked state legislators to pull the proposal two weeks before the signature deadline, feeling it could not win on the ballot in 2024.  The rent control ban was put into place in 1994 and although there have been efforts to overturn it ever since and Mayor Wu and the City Council had intentions of some form of a cap, the measure was really unpopular in terms of public support.

You can read…

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If you’re considering buying a home or selling your current one to find something that better suits your needs, you may have questions about what’s happening with home prices today. Here’s what you need to know.

There’s still a lot of confusion and misinformation out there. So, no matter what you may have heard, the national data shows they've actually been climbing again (see graphs below):

 


As you can see, in the first half of 2022, home prices went way up. Those increases were dramatic and unsustainable. So, in the second half of 2022, prices adjusted. Those dips were small and didn't last very long. Still, the news made a big deal about these slight declines, which may have made you worry.

But what's important to know is that, in…

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