A couple of years ago, my husband and I were at another school meeting to discuss my son’s behavior. The principal mentioned that he is very literal and asked us, “Why would that be the case?” My husband just looked at me and then repeated the question.
So… I guess that means I look at information as it is. Like, October 2026 had the fewest closed sales since 2007. That is information that isn’t great, but context also matters. There are too many headlines using scare tactics just to get clicks. Every submission I’ve sent to Inman has been rejected for not being edgy enough. Apparently, actual housing analytics isn’t edgy, but I digress. Context matters. Everything about real estate today is different than it was in October 2007, other than the closing numbers, and 2026’s numbers were still higher than 2007’s. The sky was literally falling back then. Today it is not. Today, nationally, equity levels are about $35T. That T stands for trillion, so many zeros (is there even a number after a trillion, or is it made up?). In 2010, national equity stood at about $9T. In 16 years, American equity nearly quadrupled. Things are not the same.
The perception of real estate has changed. Once upon a time, it was solely about shelter. Institutions like Invitation Homes taught us it was about investment. And many, many Americans made a lot of money from their real estate holdings. As they should, right? It is the American dream to own a home. That dream today is not dead, but it is tougher than it used to be. And just because it is tougher than it used to be doesn’t reduce its value; it actually increases it. And therein lies the question: how do we make real estate more affordable without reducing its value? The only answer I have is for prices to stay flat. When prices don’t increase, it doesn’t put additional pressure on buyers. And when prices stay flat, it doesn’t reduce a homeowner’s equity.
And guess what… prices are flat. They have been for several years, and they will likely remain this way for some time. This is ideal. Yes, some markets are increasing while others are decreasing, but the swings, for the most part, are quite small. See the chart below.
So my literal conclusion on today’s market is this: we are currently hampered by a lack of demand (mortgage rates, uncertainty, recent elections). It isn’t gone forever, but it is on pause until we have a bit more stability. In 2007, we were hampered by a flood of supply and an intense lack of equity. The sales numbers may resemble each other, but the experience of the buyers and sellers is very, very different.
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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.
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