In this 8 minute video, Amber Kovarik and I discuss the 5 things you need to know about that happened this week in real estate.
One.
Last week NAR’s board of directors approved changes to its Code of Ethics and Standards of Practice. According to Andrea Brambila of Iman, the changes apply “to all of a Realtor’s activities, not just those related to real estate; prohibit hate and harassing speech against protected classes; prohibit all discrimination, not just willful discrimination, against protected classes; and recommend that ethics violations be considered under membership qualification criteria.”
Two.
Supply & Demand. Single family rentals are appreciating faster than single family sales. Today a renter will pay more for the median single family home than would a buyer for the same property. Rents have increased 12% since May. Listings have increased but have been absorbed almost immediately so the inventory increase is not apparent. New listings increased 13% in Q3 2020. New listings in October increased by 5%. For the last month or so we have been hanging out at roughly 8400 active listings excluding UCB. We would like to see that number closer to 25,000.
Three.
A $15,000 first time homebuyer credit is part of the housing proposal created by President-elect Joe Biden. Dr. Lawrence Yun, Chief Economist for NAR stated that it is helpful for first time buyers entering the market but it is only a part of the solution. He went on to say, “But that’s not the full story, the full story is that stimulating the demand just by itself I think is insufficient. Right now the housing market is facing a significant housing shortage. So if we add further stimulus to the demand without addressing the supply… it will simply bump up the prices even higher.”
Four.
Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac have changed their guidance and will now categorize a sale as being caught up on a mortgage that had been in forbearance. There are two ways to be eligible for a new loan after being in forbearance. The borrower can get caught up, either through a sale or the forborne amount was paid in pull or 3 months of consecutive payments through the forbearance plan/loan modification.
Five.
Rate Update. Expecting low rates for the foreseeable future. Stocks are doing well due to the vaccine announcements. FED stated it will continue buying mortgage backed securities to maintain stability and will even increase purchasing if need be.
Sarah Perkins is an award winning account executive and has been in title sales since 2004. As the Director of Industry Research & Senior Account Executive, Sarah’s role is to bring real estate transactions to Navi Title. Sarah supports her clients by helping them navigate the ever-changing real estate space through thorough research and understanding of current trends impacting today’s home buyers and sellers.