The Cost of NOT Owning Your Home

Owning a home has great financial benefits. Because of this, more and more experts are growing concerned about the ramifications of a falling homeownership rate. Today, let’s look at the financial reasons why owning a home of your own has been a part of the American Dream for as long as America has existed.

The outcomes of a falling homeownership rate can be devastating. As explained byApartmentList.com:

“Our research indicates that not owning a home has a sizable financial cost, as renters miss out on low mortgage rates and are hit by higher rents.

This phenomenon may exacerbate inequality in our society, as those wealthy enough to invest in real estate benefit from lower interest rates, whereas minorities and younger Americans, hit by rising rents and student debt, risk being locked out of homeownership.”
What proof exists that owning is financially better than renting?

1. A study published by the Joint Center of Housing Studies at Harvard University shows the financial benefits of homeownership. The study mentions five major financial benefits:
Housing is typically the one leveraged investment available
You're paying for housing whether you own or rent
Owning is usually a form of “forced savings”
There are substantial tax benefits to owning
Owning is a hedge against inflation

2. Studies have shown that homeowners have a net worth that is 45X greater than that of a renter.

3. Just last month, we explained that a family buying an average priced home this past January could build more than $46,000 in family wealth over the next five years.

4. Some argue that renting eliminates the cost of taxes and home repairs. Every potential renter must realize that all the expenses the landlord incurs are baked into the rent payment already – along with a profit margin!!
Bottom Line

Owning a home has always been, and will always be better from a financial standpoint than renting.

Looking to Buy, Sell, or Invest? Contact:

David Demangos
Cell: 858.232.8410
www.AwesomeSanDiegoRealEstate.com
David@AwesomeSanDiegoRealEstate.com
Our Team Goes to Extremes to Fulfill Your Real Estate Dreams!

14,767 Houses Sold Yesterday, Did Yours?

There are some homeowners that have been waiting for months to get a price they hoped for when they originally listed their house for sale. The only thing they might want to consider is... If it hasn't sold yet, maybe it's not priced properly. After all, 14,767 houses sold yesterday, 14,767 will sell today and 14,767 will sell tomorrow. 14,767!

That is the average number of homes that sell each and every day in this country, according to the National Association of Realtors’ (NAR) latest Existing Home Sales Report. NAR reported that sales are at an annual rate of 5.39 million. Divide that number by 365 (days in a year) and we can see that, on average, over 14,767 homes sell every day.

The report from NAR also revealed that there is currently only a 4.7-month supply of inventory available for sale, (6-months inventory is considered ‘historically normal’).

This means that there are not enough homes available for sale to satisfy the buyers who are out in the market now in record numbers.
Bottom Line

We realize that you want to get the fair market value for your home. However, if it hasn't sold in today's active real estate market, perhaps you should reconsider your current asking price.

Looking to Buy, Sell, or Invest? Contact:

David Demangos

Cell: 858.232.8410

www.AwesomeSanDiegoRealEstate.com

David@AwesomeSanDiegoRealEstate.com

Our Team Goes to Extremes to Fulfill Your Real Estate Dreams!

Is the Current Pace of Home Sales Sustainable?

There are some experts questioning whether the current pace of residential home sales is sustainable. Are too many people buying homes like in 2004-2006? Are we headed for another housing crisis? Actually, if we look closely at the numbers, we can see that we are looking at a very healthy real estate market.

Why the concern?

Some are looking at the last three years of home sales and comparing them to the three years just prior to the housing bubble. Looking at the graph below, we can understand that thinking.

However, if we go further back in history, we can see the real picture. After taking out the “boom; bust” years, the pace of sales is growing at a quite natural pace.

And new home sales are way below historic numbers. Trulia’s Chief Economist Ralph McLaughlin explains:

“Adjusted for population, [new home sales] are at about 63% of their fifty-year average level—way better than 2011, but nowhere near heated.”

Bottom Line

The current pace of residential home sales definitely seems sustainable.

Looking to Buy, Sell, or Invest? Contact:

David Demangos

858.232.8410

Locally Known, Globally Connected

Luxury Home Marketing Specialist

Global Property Specialist

David@AwesomeSanDiegoRealEstate.com

www.AwesomeSanDiegoRealEstate.com

Our Team Goes to Extremes to Fulfill Your Real Estate Dreams!

Home Prices Up 5.61% Across The Country!

Some Highlights:

• The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) recently released their latest Quarterly Home Price Index report.
• In the report, home prices are compared both regionally and by state.
• Based on the latest numbers, if you plan on relocating to another state, waiting to move may end up costing you more!
• Vermont was the only one state where home prices are actually lower than they were last year.

Looking to Buy, Sell, or Invest? Contact:

David Demangos

Cell: 858.232.8410

www.AwesomeSanDiegoRealEstate.com

David@AwesomeSanDiegoRealEstate.com

Our Team Goes to Extremes to Fulfill Your Real Estate Dreams!

Don't Get Caught in the Rental Trap!

There are many benefits to homeownership. One of the top ones is being able to protect yourself from rising rents and lock in your housing cost for the life of your mortgage.

Don’t Become Trapped

Jonathan Smoke, Chief Economist at realtor.com, reported on what he calls a “Rental Affordability Crisis.” He warns that low rental vacancies and a lack of new rental construction are pushing up rents, and we expect that they’ll outpace home price appreciation in the year ahead.”

In the Joint Center for Housing Studies at Harvard University's 2015 Report on Rental Housing, they reported that 49% of rental households are cost-burdened, meaning they spend more than 30% of their income on housing. These households struggle to save for a rainy day and pay other bills, such as food and healthcare.

It’s Cheaper to Buy Than Rent

In Smoke’s article, he went on to say,

“Housing is central to the health and well-being of our country and our local communities. In addition, this (rental affordability) crisis threatens the future value of owned housing, as the burdensome level of rents will trap more aspiring owners into a vicious financial cycle in which they cannot save and build a solid credit record to eventually buy a home.”

“While more than 85% of markets have burdensome rents today, it’s perplexing that in more than 75% of the counties across the country, it is actually cheaper to buy than rent a home. So why aren’t those unhappy renters choosing to buy?”

Know Your Options

Perhaps you have already saved enough to buy your first home. HousingWire reported that analysts at Nomura believe:

"It’s not that Millennials and other potential homebuyers aren’t qualified in terms of their credit scores or in how much they have saved for their down payment.

It’s that they think they’re not qualified or they think that they don’t have a big enough down payment.” (emphasis added)

Many first-time homebuyers who believe that they need a large down payment may be holding themselves back from their dream home. As we have reported before, in many areas of the country, a first-time home buyer can save for a 3% down payment in less than two years. You may have already saved enough!

Bottom Line
Don’t get caught in the trap so many renters are currently in. If you are ready and willing to buy a home, find out if you are able. Let’s get together to determine if you could qualify for a mortgage now!

Looking to Buy, Sell, or Invest? Contact:

David Demangos

858.232.8410

Locally Known, Globally Connected

Luxury Home Marketing Specialist

Global Property Specialist

David@AwesomeSanDiegoRealEstate.com

www.AwesomeSanDiegoRealEstate.com

Our Team Goes to Extremes to Fulfill Your Real Estate Dreams!

5 Reasons to Sell This Fall

School is back in session, the holidays are right around the corner, you might not think that now is the best time to sell your house. But with inventory below historic numbers and demand still strong, you could be missing out on a great opportunity for your family.
Here are five reasons why you should consider selling your house this fall: 

1. Demand Is Strong

The latest Realtors’ Confidence Index from the National Association of Realtors (NAR) shows that buyer demand remains very strong throughout the vast majority of the country. These buyers are ready, willing and able to purchase… and are in the market right now!

Take advantage of the buyer activity currently in the market.

2. There Is Less Competition Now

According to NAR’s latest Existing Home Sales Report, the supply of homes for sale is still under the 6-month supply that is needed for a normal housing market at 4.7-months.

This means, in most areas, there are not enough homes for sale to satisfy the number of buyers in that market. This is good news for home prices. However, additional inventory is about to come to market.

There is a pent-up desire for many homeowners to move, as they were unable to sell over the last few years because of a negative equity situation. Homeowners are now seeing a return to positive equity as real estate values have increased over the last two years. Many of these homes will be coming to the market this fall.

Also, as builders regain confidence in the market, new construction of single-family homes is projected to continue to increase over the next two years, reaching historic levels by 2017. Last month’s new home sales numbers show that many buyers who have not been able to find their dream home within the existing inventory have turned to new construction to fulfill their needs.

The choices buyers have will continue to increase. Don’t wait until all this other inventory of homes comes to market before you sell.

3. The Process Will Be Quicker

Fannie Mae announced that they anticipate an acceleration in home sales that will surpass 2007's pace. As the market heats up, banks will be inundated with loan inquiries causing closing-time lines to lengthen. Selling now will make the process quicker & simpler. 

4. There Will Never Be a Better Time to Move Up

If you are moving up to a larger, more expensive home, consider doing it now. Prices are projected to appreciate by 5.3% over the next year, according to CoreLogic. If you are moving to a higher-priced home, it will wind up costing you more in raw dollars (both in down payment and mortgage payment) if you wait.

According to Freddie Mac’s latest report, you can also lock-in your 30-year housing expense with an interest rate around 3.46% right now. Interest rates are projected to increase moderately over the next 12 months. Even a small increase in rate will have a big impact on your housing cost.

5. It’s Time to Move On with Your Life

Look at the reason you decided to sell in the first place and determine whether it is worth waiting. Is money more important than being with family? Is money more important than your health? Is money more important than having the freedom to go on with your life the way you think you should?

Only you know the answers to the questions above. You have the power to take control of the situation by putting your home on the market. Perhaps the time has come for you and your family to move on and start living the life you desire.
That is what is truly important.

Looking to Buy, Sell, or Invest? Contact:

David Demangos

Cell: 858.232.8410

www.AwesomeSanDiegoRealEstate.com

David@AwesomeSanDiegoRealEstate.com

Our Team Goes to Extremes to Fulfill Your Real Estate Dreams!

The Housing Market is Doing Just Fine

There are some that think that housing affordability is a challenge. Historically, that’s not true. Others think that home prices are approaching bubble values. If we look back over the last sixteen years, that is also not the case. As a matter of fact, the numbers show that the U.S. residential real estate market is doing just fine.

Here are two articles and excerpts that make this point:
The Housing Market Is Finally Starting to Look Healthy– The NY Times

“It has been an excruciatingly long time coming, but the housing sector in the United States is finally getting healthy. Thank millennials and thank homebuilders who are starting to produce more of the starter houses young people demand.”
Why the U.S. Housing Market Is Good and Getting Even Better – The Street

“Interest rates are so low now that a family can buy the median-priced U.S. home on income of less than $45,000 a year -- about $11,000 less than the median household income. And half of America's houses are cheaper than that.”

There are those worried that all this positive talk resembles what was being said in 2004 and 2005. Jonathan Smoke, Chief Economist at realtor.com, explains the difference very simply but effectively:

“The havoc during the last cycle was the result of building too many homes and of speculation fueled by loose credit.That’s the exact opposite of what we have today.” (emphasis added)

Looking to Buy, Sell, or Invest? Contact:

David Demangos

858.232.8410

Locally Known, Globally Connected

Luxury Home Marketing Specialist

Global Property Specialist

David@AwesomeSanDiegoRealEstate.com

www.AwesomeSanDiegoRealEstate.com

Our Team Goes to Extremes to Fulfill Your Real Estate Dreams!

How Do Rising Prices Impact Your Home Equity?

Recently, we shared the results of the latest Home Price Expectation Survey byPulsenomics. One of the big takeaways from the survey is that over the next five years, home prices will appreciate 3.5% per year on average, and cumulatively will grow by around 18%.

So what does this mean for homeowners and their equity position?

For example, let’s assume a young couple purchased and closed on a $250,000 home in January of this year. If we only look at the projected increase in the price of that home, how much equity would they earn over the next 5 years?

Since the experts predict that home prices will increase by 4.5% this year alone, the young homeowners will have gained over $11,000 in equity in just one year.

Over a five-year period, their equity will increase by over $46,000! This figure does not even take into account their monthly principal mortgage payments. In many cases, home equity is one of the largest portions of a family’s overall net worth.

Bottom Line

Not only is homeownership something to be proud of, it also offers you and your family the ability to build equity you can borrow against in the future. If you are ready and willing to buy, find out if you are able to today!

Looking to Buy, Sell, or Invest? Contact:

David Demangos

858.232.8410

Locally Known, Globally Connected

Luxury Home Marketing Specialist

Global Property Specialist

David@AwesomeSanDiegoRealEstate.com

www.AwesomeSanDiegoRealEstate.com

Our Team Goes to Extremes to Fulfill Your Real Estate Dreams!