Existing-home sales posted their third consecutive month of declines despite soaring home buyer demand nationwide. Despite record-high home prices, buyers remain active in the market, but the lack of homes for sale is constraining activity.However, a turnaround to ongoing inventory woes could be on the horizon, said Lawrence Yun, chief economist of the National Association of REALTORS®.Existing-home sales—completed transactions that include si
As the economy continues to strengthen, mortgage rates are heading upwards. The 30-year fixed-rate mortgage increased from its 2.94% average last week to 3% this week, Freddie Mac reports.“Mortgage rates are more likely to continue to rise than fall throughout the rest of 2021,” Nadia Evangelou, National Association of REALTORS® senior economist and director of forecasting, writes on the association’s Economists’ Outlook blog. “The eco
Opportunity zones—federally designated areas that are ripe for investment and revitalization—are benefiting from the housing boom, too, as they see prices increase to the likes of more affluent places. In the first quarter of 2021, 75% of opportunity zones with sufficient data saw median home prices rise annually. Two-thirds of them saw prices rise by at least 10%, according to a new report from ATTOM Data Solutions.Opportunity zones were est
Real estate pros are report homes fetching multiple offers to the likes of 20 or even 97 bids on listings as the homebuying frenzy continues. To win in a bidding war, buyers may be willing to waive contingencies and stretch their budgets to the absolute max.Some buyers are offering $100,000 above asking price, Debbie Barrera, a broker at Realty Austin in Austin, Texas, told The Wall Street Journal. She even had a buyer offer $500,0
The median rent in the 50 largest metros nationwide increased 2.7% year over year, the largest growth since the beginning of the COVID-19 outbreak, according to a new report from realtor.com®. The nation’s largest tech hubs are seeing some of the biggest rebounds in rental prices as more technology firms announce return-to-the-office plans.The U.S. median rent in April averaged $1,483, the fastest growth since March 2020. Prior to the pan
Home sellers have big expectations of multiple offers, bidding wars, and high prices when they list their home for sale, according to a new survey from realtor.com® of 657 homeowners planning to sell in the next 12 months. Twenty-four percent of homeowners expect to get more than their asking price, and 29% of sellers plan to ask for more than what they think their home is worth, the survey shows.Home sellers are looking to cash out on the red-h
Property taxes can vary considerably based on where you live. Homeowners in some metro areas pay thousands of dollars more per year than owners elsewhere. Home shoppers will want to factor in these added costs when they buy to avoid unexpected tax surprises.For example, the median real estate tax in Las Vegas—the lowest of the 50 largest metros analyzed—is about $7,700 cheaper than in New York, where property taxes are highest, according to a
Cash is often king. Buyers who can make an all-cash offer on a home can stand out when competition is tight. Cash purchases tend to pose less risk that a deal will fall through from a low appraisal, have fewer financing hang-ups, and tend to make for faster transactions.All-cash deals comprised 20% of sales over the first two months of this year, up about 5% compared to a year ago, according to a new analysis from realtor.com®. The majority of c
Demand for homes in some of the lowest-cost neighborhoods in the country is surging in the red-hot housing market, prompting neighborhood revitalization projects to spread.U.S. ZIP codes where the median home price is less than $100,000 have posted a 42% jump in home values in the past three years, according to an analysis by CoreLogic and The Wall Street Journal. That’s double the increase in ZIP codes where the median price was between $
Super-fast 5G connection speeds could become a future selling point for homes. Eighty-seven percent of consumers say that a home with access to fifth-generation cellular internet speeds and networks makes the property more valuable, according to a new survey of 1,000 U.S. adults commissioned by Verizon. What’s more, 62% of real estate agents believe that the next year or two will bring more opportunities to advertise home access to a 5G network
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