Hello, Happy Tidings from the Dulcie Crawford Group. Welcome to 2024 we look forward to seeing an even more successful real estate market this year. I’ve recently received several inquiries about my expectations for market conditions going into the new year. That has inspired me to begin a new market watch blog at the beginning of every month. I look forward to sharing this with my real estate community.
For our first market watch blog January 2024, recent developments in the last few weeks reported by our market specialists are indeed cause for celebration and hope for what the future holds for our current housing market in the Las Vegas Valley area and we are here to tell you why! After the low inventory challenges that plagued the market most of the last year of 2023 we’re finally starting to see some changes in the market moving in the correct direction. There are some areas of town that are seeing higher listings activity, which can bring about a sense of normalcy and balance in today’s market conditions. Interest rates in November dropped by the largest margin seen in over a decade.
There is also much optimism about an improving economy moving into 2024, but it’s important we set the right expectations about rates. Rates in the high 5’s, on average, could come in late ‘24 but most are predicting low to mid 6’s through the year. If a buyer wants a rate in the 5’s, a buy-down is still the best option and many sellers are still motivated to contribute towards buyers’ closing costs to make it happen over all. Lower rates are clearly the key to affordability in a low inventory environment. Self-employed Americans make up less than 20% of the workers in the United States. They account for 66% of the millionaires.
NAR Chief Economist says: Home prices will continue to go up until there’s a lot more supply. It will take a 30% rise in new home construction to meet demand. However, home builder website activity is around 10% higher than a year ago. Many buyers still love and prefer new houses. New home prices are going up. A recent study of the “coming soon” homes on home builder websites show prices going up 9% from one year ago, driven by more costly land prices.
Fannie Mae Updated Mortgage Rate Predictions says: 30-year fixed mortgage rates are predicted to be as shown below.
Predictions for 2024
7.0% in Q1 2024 (previously 7.6%)
6.8% in Q2 2024 (p: 7.4%)
6.6% in Q3 2024 (p: 7.2%)
6.5% in Q4 2024 (p: 7.1%)
Predictions for 2025
6.3% in Q1 2025 (p: 7.0%)
6.2% in Q2 2025 (p: 6.9%)
6.2% in Q3 2025 (p: 6.8%)
6.1% in Q4 2025 (p: 6.8%)
In more recent reports this week, job reports were very hot – the US economy added 216k new jobs in December alone. Way above expectations overall for the last month of 2023. Unemployment rates fell to 3.7%, Job Claims were the lowest they have been all year, and the cherry on top of those pieces of good news are that wages are up 4% overall.We are living in unpredictable times, and so it’s hard to pinpoint that rates will continue to drop or go back up, confusing to me and many others I know in the industry. What I do feel for the 2024 Future, is that the Las Vegas Valley Real Estate Market will continue to grow in demand , as relocations to Nevada are on pace to be the largest growth decade on record for the state, and could grow higher. Short of a World economic blow up, Vegas will continue to be a Hot growth real estate market, and home values will continue to rise in the 5-6 % appreciation ranges for the next few years.
This being said however can cause some challenges for the near future of mortgage rates. Historically, Millennials, who are the largest segment of homebuyers today, have earned the most money of any generation, but they hold less wealth because the cost of living has gone up so much. Owning Real Estate still offers the greatest pathway to creating financial wealth in the U.S.,this will be even more evident as the cost of living and homeownership continues to rise. Securing your financial future with home ownership now, when the investment costs Less vs 5 years from now, will be possibly one of the wisest decisions you will make in your lifetime. “Buy the House Not the rate”, you can always re-fiance, if the rates drop lower. This is why in our last article we strongly recommended that potential home buyers take advantage of the historic drop in rates during December, before they potentially begin to climb higher again in the near future with the economy heating up instead of cooling, and cost of home ownership becoming more expensive.
According to Mortgage New Daily, the national average rates were up ( local rates are often a bit lower):
6.67 conventional 30yr
6.04 conventional 15yr
6.23 conventional 5/1 arm
7.00 jumbo 30 year
6.18 FHA 30 yr
6.19 VA 30 yr
Non – QM Rates, like bank statement loans and no doc investors loans, are about 1-2% higher.
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Dulcie is a native Nevadan, born and raised in Las Vegas, and has witnessed the spectacular growth of the Las Vegas Valley first hand. She is a graduate of UNLV’s Hotel & Business Administration College. Previously working in the Culinary Arts and Restaurant Industry for over a Decade, She switched over to working in the Real Estate Industry in 1998, and never looked back. Her love of working with people and assisting them on their options to purchase either their dream home and or an investment property has guided her to a successful career for over 25 years. Dulcie’s personal Knowledge of the Las Vegas Valley ,Henderson & Boulder City Communities, gives her a strong knowledge of the Las Vegas Valley and what’s going on in Real Estate today. Dulcie stays current with local market conditions and continues working to be updated on market trends, legal reforms and financing so she can assist you to make informed decisions. A senior Realtor with Signature Real Estate Group, she has sold 1000’s of homes since 1998. Dulcie has her ABR (Accredited Buyer Representative), SRES( Seniors Expert) SFR (Short Sales and Foreclosures Specialist), CNE (Certified Negotiation Expert) and E-Pro designations that give her the background as an advanced professional in the Real Estate Field. You will be assured a professional experience when buying or selling Real Estate with The Dulcie Crawford Group.
