Debra Oman, Your Real Estate Pro

Debra

Oman

Your Real Estate Expert

What is going on in today’s real estate market anyway?

There is a lot of uncertainty running rampant in the media and even among friends. It was just a year ago that we heard that home prices are dropping by as much as 20%! Don’t believe all that rhetoric. Even the highest priced market in the country (San Francisco) only took about a 7% decrease. The reality is that they’re holding steady or going up, particularly in the Missouri markets.

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Price Trends in Greene & Christian Counties

Aug 2018-Aug 2023

This graph gives us perspective on historic trends for the last few years. There are normal dips around holidays, but the actual sales prices have continued to creep up. You’ll also see

how the greatest dip over the last year was when those pesky interest rates started to go up. If you’re wanting to buy a new home, don’t let the rates scare you! With this ongoing increase in sales values, it will save you $$$ on the loan value. There are many financing

options, including refinancing in a year when those rates come back down, and you’ll come out ahead.

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Number of Listings in Greene & Christian Counties

Aug 2021-Aug 2023

So why are prices going up, you may ask! Inventory is the main reason. The pandemic kept many people locked down in their homes while others made major changes in their lives and moved to more comfortable locations for their family’s needs. Less people selling, but more people buying. That trend has started to shift with inventory going up in the last few months, but it is still not at a normal level.

What’s my home worth?

Don’t trust those online estimators to give you an accurate price on your home. This is a non-disclosure state, which means that final sales prices are not public knowledge and those sources are guess-timating. Actual sales prices are only available on our MLS’s and are used to determine value by Realtors as well as appraisers. That’s why you need a real estate pro, like me!

How to Prepare your Home for Sale

So, what is going on with mortgage rates?

In the real estate and mortgage world today, this is the big question: When will these record high interest rates come down?

In lieu of having a crystal ball, we are left with some economic indicators and expert opinions. The Federal Reserve is carefully watching the overall state of the economy and in particular employment numbers and inflationary pressures. The general consensus is that until this economy “softens” i.e. unemployment goes up and inflation comes down, we will continue to see these high rates. In short, they are trying to slow inflation with higher rates in hopes one things follows the other. The flip side of this is that if the Fed pushes too much, we will slip into a recession. A recession would indeed bring rates down.

Most industry experts are predicting rates coming down “measurably” in the second half of 2024. Does this mean now isn’t a good time to buy? Absolutely not! First, a refinance can always be in your future. Most lenders are offering returning clients a refinance that waives the lender fees. Second, you can bet that the minute those rates start to come down, there will be a mass influx of buyers to an already competitive market.

Budgeting is best and home ownership continues to be an attainable goal for many.