This is a great time to plan for the future of your home, so contact us today!
First impressions matter, so when you finally put your house on the market, you’ll want to pay special attention to how you stage your property.
Staging is a real estate term that means how a house looks, and good staging helps buyers imagine themselves in the home. It shows off the property’s good features, hides its flaws, turns unconventional spaces into usable spaces, creates a mood, and makes the house look significantly better in photos.
So, let’s look at why staging is necessary and some of the easiest and most recommended staging steps to ensure you get top dollar for your home!
Low default rates are a positive sign of the housing market’s resiliency
There are signals that the market is shifting to favor homebuyers
Our team is ready to help you achieve your goals, so contact us today!
As with any investment, the best time to buy is when prices are low. It’s no different when it comes to real estate. With one historic and unprecedented event after another these days, knowing when to move in today’s market can be complicated and intimidating, but it doesn’t need to be.
Analysts agree about where the market is likely headed. So as 2022 winds down, let’s review the latest news to help you better understand where your opportunity lies (and why now may actually be the best time to buy!).
Low loan defaults are keeping the housing market healthy
The current housing market is not a repeat of the previous financial crisis in 2008. The two primary factors that contributed to the housing market crash back then were cheap credit and lax lending standards. Remember the terms subprime, mortgage-backed securities, CDOs, and adjustable rate mortgage? Thankfully, that’s not what’s making headlines this time around.
Today, lending standards are more strict than they were 15 years ago, and because of this, most homeowners are not teetering on loan default like they were back in 2008. In response to the global COVID-19 pandemic, banks introduced various programs to help homeowners stay current on their mortgages and avoid default. The result is historic mortgage balance lows, with loans that are 90 days past due pegged at just 0.5%. That’s a far cry from the staggering 11.36% rate back in 2010 when homeowners struggled to make payments.
Economic signals indicate this is becoming a buyer’s market
Putting today’s housing market in proper historical context is paramount to making an informed decision. While the current 7% mortgage interest rates are certainly higher than the pandemic-induced low of 2.65% in December 2020 (the lowest in history!), that doesn’t mean you should avoid buying a home. Compared to the all-time high of 18.45% set back in 1981, today’s average rate of 7% is suddenly far less imposing.
Experts all agree: home equities are going to decline. The only dispute between analysts is by how much, with some analysts projecting an average decline of about 20%. According to Black Knight, a mortgage technology and data provider, home prices have declined slightly, but mortgage holders possess $11.5 trillion in tappable equity.
Even though recent news and numbers seem to suggest that the real estate market may be experiencing a slowdown, Black Knight added that the “market is on strong footing to weather a correction” given that the total market leverage (including both first and second liens) was just 42% of mortgaged homes’ values – the lowest number on record.
Homes are always a solid investment strategy
Eager would-be homebuyers waiting for home prices to fall have some good news ahead of them. But, homeowners have good news, too. While there’s plenty of panic around a “decline” in home prices, the Case-Shiller Index reports it’s just 2.2%—meaning homeowners are still in command of a 38.33% increase in the last two years.
With mortgage interest rates hovering around 7% and home values stabilizing, the tail-end of 2022 or 2023 may be the best time for you to finally make that move, especially as two-thirds of major regional housing markets (98 out of 148) prices continue to drop.
We’ll Help You Buy For the Right Price
When you’re ready to make your move, reach out and contact our trusted real estate team. We know the local housing market and can help guide you to the best deals available on the market today. And, there are plenty of ways to extend your buying power and reduce your interest rates! Our team can’t wait to share our proven strategies with you, so contact us today at The Bouma Group, Realtors at 734-761-3060 or info@bouma.com!
SOLD! Walk to the community pool from this Greene Farms home at 7300 Warwick Drive, situated on a corner lot near walking trails and parks. Features include:
1593 square feet of living space with 3 bedrooms and 2.1 baths.
Open floor plan is great for entertaining and family life.
Spacious primary suite offers a vaulted ceiling, large walk-in closet, and private bath with a dual sink vanity.
Roof new in 2020, back yard fence new in 2020, water heater new in 2018, and new sump pump.
3697 square feet with an additional 1848 in the finished, walkout lower level.
6 bedrooms, 4 full and 1 half bath.
Fantastic views of the golf course from almost every room in the house, plus the Trex deck and tiered brick paver patio.
The spacious great room has a vaulted ceiling with a fan, fireplace, and wall of windows.
The First-floor guest suite with a private bath and walk-in closet can also be used as a primary suite.
The expansive lower level offers a home theater with built-in speakers, the 6th bedroom, a full bath, kitchenette, and walks out to a patio with the golf course beyond.
5392 square feet, with an additional 2645 in the finished walk-out, 4 bedrooms, and 5.1 baths.
All-brick paver driveway and professionally landscaped yard give a great first impression.
Gleaming hardwood floors throughout most of the first level with tile in the conservatory and flex space.
Soaring, coffered cathedral ceiling and stunning fireplace, and expansive windows in the great room.
Dream kitchen features plenty of granite counter space, Wolf appliances, a center island, and walk-in pantry.
The luxurious primary suite is highlighted by the tray ceiling, 3-sided fireplace, sitting area, dressing room, and lavish bathroom.
The finished lower level has a wet bar, home theater, recreation space, a spa room with a hot tub, and walks out the paver patio and in-ground salt water pool.
Amid high inflation, increasing mortgage rates, and limited housing inventory, the headlines make it seem like there’s no good news in the real estate market. But when you listen closely to expert economists and look at your local market, you’ll learn that there’s plenty of opportunity. Let’s take a closer look to understand the complete picture of what’s really going on in the housing market.
There are plenty of strategies to successfully buy in today’s market.
Lean in on the expertise of your local real estate—we’ve seen it all!
Our team is ready to help you achieve your goals, so contact us today.
Whether you’re shopping for your first home or relocating to a new area, purchasing a home in today’s real estate market can be daunting. However, the good news is that today’s housing market can actually be helpful if you’re a prospective home buyer who knows how to play the game well. When it comes to making a winning offer on your dream home, you must know certain particulars of the home buying process to be successful.
So, let’s look at the top five home buying tips that will help to play the real estate game more effectively and pave your path to home ownership.
With all the headlines and talk in the media about the shift in the housing market, you might be thinking this is a housing bubble. It’s only natural for those thoughts to creep in that make you think it could be a repeat of what took place in 2008. But the good news is, there’s concrete data to show why today’s housing market is nothing like it was then.
There’s Still a Shortage of Homes on the Market Today, Not a Surplus
