This year’s housing market is off to a great start. Buyers and Sellers, are you curious to know the latest national housing stats?
Hi, I’m Tanja Odzak, eXp Realty, I help people sell and buy homes right here in the East Bay!
Let’s take a look at what’s happening nationally with housing. According to Realtor.com, existing home sales have surged in recent months indicating a positive sign for this year’s housing market. Realtor.com is reporting sales of existing homes jumped 9.5% from January to February which is the largest month over month increase in a year. Experts are predicting the surge in monthly closings are most likely due to the dip in mortgage rates which began declining in the Fall of 2023.
According to Realtor.com Chief Economist Danielle Hale, “Mortgage rates tumbled from late October through mid-January and remained steady through February with the lowest rates since May 2023. This dip brought down buyer’s closing costs and enabled more buyers to make a move in 2024.”
Nationally, we are seeing home prices continue to rise at about 4.7% year over year to a median national price of $384,500. We are also seeing an increase in housing supply, with 10.3% more existing homes on the market than this time last year. First time home buyers still continue to struggle with affordability often being beat out by cash offers and investors. National statistics show about a third of all existing home sales were paid by cash in February, up from about 28% this time last year. According to the National Association of Realtors, many of the purchases have been either investors or second home buyers. Foreclosures and short sales continue to remain low representing only 3% of sales.
So, what regions of the US are experiencing the highs and lows? Sales were the highest in the West, South and Midwest. The Northeast remains a little sluggish compared to the rest of the US. And finally, Realtor.com is predicting Spring to be the best month for sellers to capitalize on the market.
If you would like more information on housing data here in the East Bay, Call me today and let’s talk about it. I’m a seasoned East Bay expert with a 5-Star rating. I’ll help you navigate the market and make it happen, whether that’s selling or buying or both!
I’m a Top Producing Realtor® in the OAKLAND / BERKELEY / EAST BAY AREA. I’ve been in the San Francisco East Bay Area since I came up to do my undergrad at UC Berkeley (a long time ago!), with a short stint at UC Davis while getting my Master’s. I take my duties as a Realtor® and Fiduciary very seriously, I enjoy educating my sellers and buyers along the way. Putting People, Before Profit.
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