Tag archive for "for sellers" | Blog.PropertiesOnline.com

Fall 2019 May Be a Better Time for Listings and Sale Than the Projections for 2020

2019 is not expected to continue the trend of high-flying home prices and rapid sales. Despite this, real estate selling experts indicate that 2019 is the best time to list a home. What gives? The remaining months are predicted to be a better market than 2020-21. For those on the fence weighing the option to sell, it could be unwise to play the waiting game.

Why is 2019 Expected to Be Better for Real Estate Selling?

• New buyers are still venturing into the market.

The affordability factor has weighed down the market. There will be no flood of buyers this year – more like a steady trickle. This will slow home price increases and extend listing times. Although housing inventory remains low, particularly in the starter-home market, high-traffic shopping will continue.

The largest segment of buyers is expected to be Millennials. In a recent Trulia poll, one-fifth of Millennials anticipate purchasing a home in 2019.

• Interest Rates Remain Low

2019 has not seen the multiple rate hikes anticipated. More recently, lowered interest rates have brought the 30-year fixed rate down to around 3.58%. Even if a raise were to occur, rates will probably remain near their historical lows. With no sudden leaps anticipated, now is a great time for buyers to lock-in low rates.

• Equity Cash-In

For sellers holding a home they purchased during or shortly after the recession, there’s a lot of equity at stake. The more equity in the home, the higher the net from the sale that can be used toward a down payment on another house. The greater the down payment, the lower the interest rate, reducing monthly payments and the need for PMI.

Don’t miss out on prime sales opportunities. Ensure maximum return-on-investment with real estate selling tips and tools from Properties Online today.

What to Know About the Luxury Real Estate Market in These Uncertain Times

At the beginning of the year, all eyes were on the housing market as it began to show signs of slowing. With a sharp rise in inventory and multiple interest rate hikes on the horizon, the future of real estate sales was uncertain. Instead, interest rates have lowered and the market appears to have entered a transitional period, where affordability challenges have pulled back price growth, particularly in the luxury real estate market.

What’s Driving Changes in the Luxury Real Estate Selling Market?

1. Market Correction
Nationally, the market is shifting in favor of buyers. Transactions over $10-million are finally on the rise. Homes unrealistically overpriced over the past 2-years have come down, particularly in regions that experienced double-digit price growth. This has created an intersection where the seller and buyer can compromise on price, boosting the buyer’s market morale.

2. Tax Law Changes

Tax law changes are hurting luxury homes at the top-end of the market. Mortgage interest and property taxes are no longer fully deductible, increasing the burden on homeowners. The luxury market has understandably taken the biggest hit, with homes priced at $2-million or more witnessing a sales slump for the first time in nearly 3 years, falling 1.6%.

3. Disappearing Foreign Funds

Markets such as NYC, once dominated by foreign money, are no longer seeing the competition of international buyers. As politics and the trade war have intensified, buyers are now more typically American. Russian buyers have disappeared, and the days of predominantly Chinese buyers are over.

4. Higher Construction Costs

The inflated prices of land, building materials, labor, and burdensome permitting regulations are pushing builders to the luxury end, softening the market.

Weather these changes with flair. Stay on top of the latest market trends with the help of these and other real estate selling tips from Properties Online today.

Market Watch: Updated 2018 Changes to Buyer Demographics

Following an exciting 2017 buying season, real estate trends point to a few changes on the horizon. What will 2018 have in store?

Changes Predicted for the 2018 Home Buying Season
Stay on your toes and be on the lookout for these changing real estate trends:

– Baby Boomers Finally Ready to Downsize

Baby boomers are finally letting go of larger traditional and colonial-style homes, and are ready to downsize in retirement. What are they looking for? A smaller footprint and single-story living, so they won’t have to navigate perilous stairways as they age. How does this translate into the market? Rising demand is expected to push up the prices of single-story dwellings.

– Millennials Compromising on the Suburbs

Though many millennials have their sights set on urban life and activity, millennial buyers, who could make up 43% of the home buying market by the close of 2018, are prioritizing affordability and quality of life – a shift which is pushing this segment out into the suburbs. Last year, the undeniable shortage of entry-level homes posed a huge hurdle for this group, the nation’s largest buyer segment.

– Post-Bubble Foreclosure Sufferers Re-Entering the Market

The more than 10-million Americans forced into foreclosure during the Great Recession have put in their 7-year, foreclosure law penance. Sick of renting and itching to re-enter the market, how many will become eligible in 2018? Around a whopping 1.5 million Americans according to the National Center for Policy Analysis, adding pressure to an already strained supply of home inventory.

Still a Seller’s Market

As buyer demand remains strong in the current year, home prices will continue to soar. This will continue to add to the stresses of first time buyers, foreclosure sufferers, and cash-strapped retirees, struggling with a lack of affordable home options and a dearth of down payment cash.

How will changing real estate trends effect your business? Stay in-the-know with the help of Properties Online.

Market Watch: What’s Hot and What’s Not in Home Design

We can’t always be experts on interior design, which is why a bit of professional advice is always welcome. In today’s real estate trends, we’ll look at what’s hot in home design from the 2018 Interior Design Show.

The Kitchen as a Focal Point
Kitchen upgrades remain a key investment opportunity, not just in design, but in technology. In today’s homes, there are an array of opportunities for design and technology to meet, and this is especially true in the kitchen. Now seen as a place to gather and even entertain, not just a place to cook, opportunities abound for kitchen personalization in both the design and technology genres. From multifunctional kitchen islands to smart refrigerators, stoves, and more, design elements turn the kitchen into an ideal second living space, the hub of the home.

Durable Materials with Clean Lines
Topping off favored kitchen materials: Engineered quartz, whose fabrication advancements have opened new doors in other areas of the home as well, surrounding tubs, showers and even fireplaces. Heavier, contrasting concretes are also quite popular surfaces around the home. Clean lines are big, with distressed wood cabinets replaced by cleaner, sharper surfaces, including boldly painted cabinet fascia.

Curvy Furnishings
Curves and soft round edges in all types of furniture, from chairs and tables to lighting, are cropping up. Lighting is more than functional, it is sculptural, with homeowners investing in lighting as they do artwork: The more fixtures the better.

Extending Living Space Outdoors
Due to limited space and sometimes crowded living quarters, extending living space outdoors continues to rise in popularity, making outdoor living spaces among the most popular real estate trends to date. Here customization opportunities abound as well, from outdoor kitchen, dining, and bar additions, to living areas, game rooms, private garden retreats, and even outdoor office space.

Strive for a listing that home buyers warm to with the hottest real estate trends from Properties Online today.

Shutting Down the Money – Chinese Real Estate Investments Dry Up

In surprising real estate trends, China’s investments in the U.S. real estate market are speedily drying up. A recent Cushman and Wakefield report highlighted the trend, noting a drop from $16.2-billion to $7.3-billion in 2016, and estimating a 55% drop in commercial real estate investments in 2017.

Why are Times Changing?
The unusually hasty retreat has been fueled by at least two factors:

Beijing’s Leaders Restricting the Flow of Cash Out of the Country
In August, China’s State Council imposed new regulations on outbound investments designed to keep capital at home and reduce the risk of runaway debt. With a massive impact on real estate trends, the move highlights the potentially dramatic effects of state-directed capitalism. Ordered by the government to sell or dispose of foreign properties, investors from state-controlled conglomerates are selling rapidly after acquisition – in some cases, before building.

Federal EB-5 Program Funding Drops, Limiting Green Card Access
The federal EB-5 program, which allows foreigners to apply for U.S. citizenship in exchange for investing $500,000 or more in a business that makes or preserves at least 10 jobs, is losing fuel. With a huge drop-off in funding, EB-5 cash from China has dropped to just 28% of its normal flow compared to the three preceding years. In the past, the millions of dollars raised in the green card program have funded major projects, including the Courtyard Los Angeles L.A. Live and the Dream Hotel complex in Hollywood.

Big Picture
Though the drop is dramatic, Cushman and Wakefield still predict Chinese capital will continue to play a significant role in the U.S. economy. Despite pulling back on new purchases, Chinese investors are not jumping ship, and are still buying more than they’re selling. However a shift is being seen, from state-controlled conglomerates to very high net worth individuals.

Are you evolving alongside today’s rapidly changing real estate trends? Stay in-the-know with the help of Properties Online today.

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