Wednesday, January 02, 2019 / by Amy McLeod
As we kick off the new year, many families have made resolutions to enter the housing market in 2019. Whether you are thinking of finally ditching your landlord and buying your first home or selling your starter house to move into your forever home, there are two pieces of the real estate puzzle you need to watch carefully: interest rates & inventory.
Interest Rates
Mortgage interest rates had been on the rise for much of 2018, but they made a welcome reversal at the end of the year. According to Freddie Mac’s latest Primary Mortgage Market Survey, rates climbed to 4.94% in November before falling to 4.62% for a 30-year fixed rate mortgage last week. Despite the recent drop, interest rates are projected to reach 5% in 2019.
The interest rate you secure when buying a home not only greatly impacts your monthly housing costs, but also impacts your purchasing power.
Purchasing power, simply put, is the amount of home you can afford ...
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amy mcleod, mcleod group network, homebuyers, homeowners, buying a house, first time home buyers, home sellers, home prices, move up buyers
Monday, December 17, 2018 / by Amy McLeod
There comes a time in many people’s lives—usually when the words “baby” or “school district” become a regular part of the vocabulary—when people flee the glamorous city to the charming suburbs. Only where, exactly, should you go? How do you find that perfect place where your neighbors seem simpatico rather than psycho?
Alison Bernstein once struggled with these same questions when contemplating moving her own family outside New York City.
“We made the quintessential buyer’s mistake,” says Bernstein. “We picked the perfect town, or so it seemed, based on our checklist. But the problem is, you very seldom know what you should look for, and you don’t consider vital intangibles. So we, like so many people, made a bad decision."
They picked a suburb that, looking back, "was great, but just not a good personality fit for us," she says. In short, it was too big. "I grew up in a small to ...
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amy mcleod, mcleod group network, homebuyers, buying a house, first time home buyers, move up buyers, moving to the suburbs
Monday, December 03, 2018 / by Amy McLeod
Here are four great reasons to consider buying a home today instead of waiting.
1. Prices Will Continue to Rise
CoreLogic’s latest Home Price Insight report revealed that home prices have appreciated by 5.6% over the last 12 months. The same report predicts that prices will continue to increase at a rate of 4.7% over the next year.
The bottom in home prices has come and gone. Home values will continue to appreciate for years. Waiting no longer makes sense.
2. Mortgage Interest Rates Are Projected to Increase
Freddie Mac’s Primary Mortgage Market Survey shows that interest rates for a 30-year mortgage have hovered around 4.8%. Most experts predict that rates will rise over the next 12 months. The Mortgage Bankers Association, Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and the National Association of Realtors are in unison, projecting that rates will increase in 2019.
An increase in rates will impact YOUR monthly mortgage payment. A yea ...
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amy mcleod, mcleod group network, homebuyers, buying a house, first time home buyers, move up buyers, buying your dream home
Monday, October 15, 2018 / by Amy McLeod
Right after we got married, my husband and I bought a starter house. At the time, we didn’t have much in savings (or in income), so it wasn’t our dream house. But it was our house, and that was enough. Coming from the tiny apartment where we started out, this three-bedroom, one-bath Cape Cod on a quiet street seemed like a dream. Our plan was to stay five years, tops, then sell it and move on to something bigger and better.
That was 12 years ago … and we’re still here.
At first, our long stay in our starter home happened purely by accident. We had two kids in quick succession, and I'd made a career move into an unsteady field. We were just too busy (and to be honest, too scared) to make the leap.
A few years ago, however, we decided we were ready to enter the real estate market once again. Financially, we were comfortable, and we were rapidly outgrowing the house that had once fit us perfectly. Time to move on!
But that's when it ...
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amy mcleod, mcleod group network, homebuyers, homeowners, buying a house, selling a house, move up buyers, starter homes, buying your dream home
Wednesday, July 18, 2018 / by Amy McLeod
Across the United States, there is a severe mismatch between the low number of houses for sale and the high demand for those houses! First-time homebuyers are out in force and are being met with a highly competitive summer real estate market.
According to the National Association of Realtors (NAR), the inventory of homes for sale “has fallen year-over-year for 36 consecutive months,” and now stands at a 4.1-month supply. A 6-month supply of inventory is necessary for a balanced market and has not been seen since August of 2012.
NAR’s Chief Economist Lawrence Yun had this to say,
“Inventory coming onto the market during this year’s spring buying season – as evidenced again by last month’s weak reading – was not even close to being enough to satisfy demand.
That is why home prices keep outpacing incomes and listings are going under contract in less than a month – and much faster – in many ...
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amy mcleod, mcleod group network, homeowners, home sellers, home values, selling a house, home prices, housing market updates, move up buyers
