More Technology – as younger buyers (Millennials are the largest buyer pool!) and younger real estate agents enter the scene, there’ll be more demand on technology. Immediate response (no VM and waiting for return calls) plus home searching and loan apps on your devices day or night lead the way. Alexa may even be able to help your home search in the future with voice commands. But don’t worry, everything you do online is being tracked by sophisticated algorithms so you can easily find what you want, and people like me (realtors) can target you with advertising!
Increasing Interest Rates – Interest rates for housing are expected to rise and hover in the low to mid 5s, up from around 4.7%-5.0% last year. The Fed has backed off, however, on its planned rate hikes, and now only projects two increases. So, it would seem that we will not have as much climb in interest rates as first thought. (See graphic for example on how interest rates affect mortgage payments.)
Outpacing 2018 – home sales this year are still expected to outpace 2018. With so many buyers entering the market, there’s still a demand for housing. And, although interest rates are rising, they are remarkably low compared to the 18% of the 1980s. Millennials also claim buying a home is a number one goal and they are actively looking. Unique to Lancaster County is the influx of retirees (we are the #1 retirement location choice in the nation), causing a demand for senior-friendly homes.
Please contact me with any questions about buying or selling in the 2019 real estate market!
Sources: inman.com, mortgagereports.com
