Is the Housing Market Really Improving?
Is the housing market really improving? This question has been foremost in the minds of many homeowners who feel that the housing market is in a volatile condition, primarily because of the increasing number of property foreclosures.
In order to evaluate whether the housing market is really improving within any year, it is important to compare activities that extend from month-to-month as well as those that have occurred from year-to-year. The question of “Is the housing market really improving?” must also take into consideration the fact that the real estate market moves in cycles.
Just like any financial or investment market, the housing market can face its own ups and downs. Lessons of history have made it clear that real estate prices should not be expected to keep on rising because it can come down pretty hard and the housing market can experience a crash.
Because of this, being concerned if the housing market is really improving can help to keep homeowners, insurance companies, and real estate agents on their toes. It is likewise important to realize that changes in the housing market sometimes do not remain localized. This means that the effect can become statewide, nationwide, or even worldwide.
Signs that the Housing Market is improving:
To address the concern if the housing market is really improving, homeowners must learn to look at the signs as well as the trends. You can actually tell if the housing market is improving by the way the value of your real estate property is increasing. However, homeowners must be cautioned that nothing in the housing industry is ever permanent. This means that you must maximize any benefits while they are available.
Undoubtedly, homeowners facing unpaid mortgages or even foreclosure can be considered as victims. They are victims in the sense that they fail to equip themselves with information about the condition of the housing market. Majority of the homeowners that are currently facing financial challenges with their real estate property are those who have become complacent and over confident too.
In order to save yourself and your property from being parted, look at some signs that can answer the question is the housing market really improving?
- Healthy job market. Some people may wonder what the relationship between the job markets and knowing if the housing market really is improving is. Basically, when people maintain a healthy job status, meaning they are not affected by layoffs and business closures, they maintain the ability to become financially healthy.
- This translates to keeping up with mortgage payments and settling financial obligations in time. Essentially, a healthy housing market is one where few people lose their homes and more people start buying their own homes.
- Vanishing for sale signs. Undoubtedly, when you see many for sale signs on the lawn of your neighbors, or worse, having one on your own lawn, it is a sure sign that the housing market is not doing very well. This holds true at least for your own neighborhood. However, if the housing market in your neighborhood starts to take a plunge, the adjacent neighborhoods may be next. Vanishing for sale signs answers the concern “is the housing market really improving?” in a positive manner.
- Median sale prices begin to stabilize. There is no question that when it comes to addressing housing market conditions, prices inevitably come into consideration. It does not matter if prices are determined per square foot, median, or average, the bottom line is that falling prices means the market is depressed.
- When prices begin to rise, the housing market is improving. When the median sale prices stabilize, this means that the housing market is healthy and if the previous year shows a drop, then definitely it is improving for the current year.
- Selling of starter homes become faster. The lesser the number of days that homes for sale spend on the market means the faster they are getting sold. Basically a reasonably priced starter home that is in good condition and within a good neighborhood is sold in about 30 to 60 days on the average. If you observe that these are going off the market faster than 30 days, then definitely you would know if the housing market is really improving?
- Reopening of businesses. The backbone of the economy is found in neighborhood-based businesses. The reason for this is that if these types of business establishments are earning profits and blossoming, then you can be assured that people are surviving financially.
- Inevitably when the economy falls, these types of businesses with limited capital are the first and hardest hit, which leads to closing down. When you see closed down neighborhood-based businesses reopening, then you can be sure that markets are improving and along with this the housing market.
- Increased demand for real estate agents. When the housing market is down, it is almost a certainty that real estate agents will be going out in droves. However, if you see real estate companies needing more agents, then this only means that the market demand is high.
- In this instance, there is no need to ask if the housing market is really improving, because it most certainly is. Increased demand means more people are buying homes, and if you compare this to previous months or years you may see a trend of improvement.
Predicting the performance of the housing market or any type of market for that matter can be extremely challenging because of a number of external factors. It is also undeniable that the housing market can be affected by other markets, which can cause it to rise or fall substantially. However, learning to recognize the signs or manifestations of development will allow you to know if the housing market is really improving.
It is recommended that you locate a short sale real estate agent before beginning the application process for a short sale. If you need assistance finding a short sale specialist near you, give us a call. We are a nationwide network of real estate agent specializing in short sales. Our short sale services are FREE to you, so call today to begin the short sale process.
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