There's a hypothesis that clarifies what's going on with sales prices in the current housing market. Set forth plainly, when the demand interest is high, costs rise. At the demand is low, costs fall. Obviously, when request is extremely high and supply is exceptionally low, costs can rise essentially. According to NAR's maximum latest Realtor Confidence Index, homes are nonetheless promoting at an all-time high.
Understanding the real estate market will give you the answers we all been waiting for such as 

Why are home sales rising? 

Where is the real estate market headed? 

What's the outcome here for homebuyers and home sellers?

How can we make the right choice into investing or selling our current property.

If you would like to connect with a realtor in Sarasota to find out more valuable information on making the move please give me a call or Visit us at our branch Coldwell Banker Realty located in Central Sarasota.

Should You Renovate or Move? That is the Big Question.
Should You Renovate or Should You Move? 
Many buyers' expectations for a home have shifted in the last 18 months. The AIA Home Design Trends Survey results for Q3 2021 were recently announced by the American Institute of Architects. The results of the poll are as follows:

 More outside living space is desired by 70% of respondents.
 A home office is desired by 69 percent of respondents (48 percent wanted multiple offices)
 A multi-purpose room/flexible area is desired by 46% of respondents.
 An au pair/in-law suite is desired by 42% of respondents.
A fitness center/yoga studio is desired by 39% of respondents.
You have two alternatives if you're a homeowner who wishes to add any of the above: renovate your current situation

If you're a homeowner looking to add any of the above, you have two choices: remodel your present home or purchase a property that already contains the areas you want. Factors such as these may influence your decision:

A potential desire to move
The cost difference between a refurbishment and a purchase
Finding an existing home or building a new home with precisely what you want (rather than attempting to rearrange the plan of your present home) In either scenario, you'll need capital: money for the renovation or a down payment on a new home. The good news is that you probably already have the money you need in the form of equity in your present house.

As a homeowner, you may have access to the funds you need to buy the perfect home or modify your present one. However, delaying your choice might raise the expense of accessing that equity.

You'll need to refinance (or take out an equity loan) to access the equity if you decide to renovate. You'll still need to borrow the difference between the down payment and the cost of your new property if you opt to relocate instead and utilize your equity as a down payment.

Over the next year, mortgage rates are expected to rise. If you wait to leverage your equity, you'll almost certainly end up paying more. According to the Federal Housing Finance Agency's most recent statistics,

First, figure out how to calculate home equity
If you're ready to either renovate your present home or discover an existing or newly constructed property that meets all of your needs, the first step is to figure out how much equity you have in your current residence. You'll need two items to accomplish this:

• Your home's current mortgage amount
• Your home's current market value
• Your mortgage balance is most likely included on your monthly mortgage statement. You may pay several hundred dollars for an appraisal or call a local real estate specialist Corina Liranzo Realtor who will be able to provide you with a professional equity assessment at no cost.

The current seller's market is a direct result of high demand and low supply.
Low mortgage rates, combined with generational trends, have resulted in increased in demand for housing. Meanwhile, the slower pace of new home construction properties, as well as homeowners remain to stay in their homes for  longer periods of time, and have both contributed to today's low supply real estate market.
If you're considering buying or selling in the florida real estate market let's talk about recently sold homes & how much is my house worth, and how you can take advantage of today's housing market .

Real Estate demand is High

• Mortgage rates have historically been low.
• The pandemic and the ability to work remotely have altered what many people require in their homes.
• Millennials , the largest generation, are reaching prime home buying age.

Real Estate supply is low

• For more than a decade, there has been insufficient new housing construction.
• During the pandemic, people were hesitant to sell.
• Less turnover as Americans choose to stay in their homes for longer periods of time

If you’re thinking of buying a home, there really is no time like the present. With today’s low mortgage rates, you have a great opportunity to get more home for your money. The challenge is inventory. Like you, many buyers want to capitalize on these market conditions, and it’s leading to more buyer competition and bidding wars.
If you’re having a hard time finding a home to buy, it may be time to talk to your trusted real estate advisor about a newly built home. Early indicators show new-home construction is beginning to ramp up. While new homes alone won’t be able to fix all of the inventory challenges, this does mean you’ll soon have more options as you search for a home. As a buyer, a newly built home may be exactly what you’re looking for – it’s brand new, and with builder customization options, it’s uniquely yours from the ground up.
Here’s what industry experts are saying about new homes coming to market:Nadia Evangelou, Senior Economist and Director of Forecasting at the National Association of Realtors (NAR), says recent research could indicate upward momentum when it comes to new home construction. Evangelou refers to the volume of new homes where construction began during a set period, known in the industry as housing starts.
According to that research, housing starts reached their highest level since 2006 in March of this year – an encouraging sign for the industry. While they dipped slightly in April, Evangelou reiterates that the level of housing construction is heading in a positive direction compared to recent years:
“…we are currently building 24% more homes than we typically have built in April in the last couple of decades. Thus, housing construction is trending upward with housing starts likely to reach 1.6 million for all of 2021 and rise further to 1.7 million in 2022.”
As new data pours in, it further confirms this trend. According to the latest Monthly New Residential Construction report from the U.S. Census Bureau, housing starts increased even more in May, which continues the ongoing upward trend (see graph below) and indicates that ground is being broken on even more new homes. Robert Dietz, Chief Economist and Senior Vice President of Economics and Housing Policy for the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB), singles out another encouraging sign:
“It is also worth noting that the number of single-family homes permitted but not started construction continued to increase in May, rising to 142,000 units.”
This insight that there’s also an uptick in single-family homes permitted serves as an additional sign that more new homes lie ahead. It’s important to realize that the construction doesn’t have to start on these homes before you may be able to purchase one. According to the Monthly New Residential Sales report from the U.S. Census Bureau, many new homes are selling before construction even begins (see graph below):These signs are all good news for housing inventory. And as the recent challenges of rising lumber prices and dwindling lumber supply begin to improve, builders will be able to increase their production even more in the months ahead.

Bottom Line
While the inventory challenges we’re facing today won’t be solved overnight, the increase in new-home construction means your house may have more competition in the market. Let’s connect to talk about finding your dream home and the newly built homes available in our area.

For generations, the process of buying and selling a home never really changed. A homeowner would try to estimate the market value of their house, then tack on a little extra to give themselves some negotiating room. That figure would become the listing price. Buyers would then try to determine how much less than the full price they could offer and still get the home. As a result, the listing price was generally the ceiling of the negotiation. The actual sales price would almost always be somewhat lower than what was listed. It was unthinkable to pay more than what the seller was asking.

​Today is different - The record-low supply of homes for sale coupled with very strong buyer demand is leading to a rise in bidding wars on many homes. Because of this, homes today often sell for more than the list price. In some cases, they sell for a lot more.

According to Lawrence Yun, Chief Economist at the National Association of Realtors (NAR):
“For every listing there are 5.1 offers. Half of the homes are being sold above list price.”

You may need to change the way you look at the asking price of a home. In this market, you likely can’t shop for a home with the former approach of negotiating to a lower price.
Due to the low supply of houses for sale, many homes are now being offered in an auction-like atmosphere in which the highest bidder wins the home. In an actual auction, the seller of an item agrees to take the highest bid, and many sellers set a reserve price on the item they’re selling. A reserve price is the minimum amount a seller will accept as the winning bid.

When navigating a competitive housing market, think of the list price of the house as the reserve price at an auction. It’s the minimum the seller will accept in many cases. Today, the asking price is often becoming the floor of the negotiation rather than the ceiling. Therefore, if you really love a home, know that it may ultimately sell for more than the sellers are asking. So, as you’re navigating the homebuying process, make sure you know your budget, know what you can afford, and work with a trusted advisor who can help you make all the right moves as you buy a home.

Bottom Line - Someone who’s more familiar with the housing market of the past than that of today may think it’s foolish to offer more for a home than the listing price. However, frequent and competitive bidding wars are creating an auction-like atmosphere in many real estate transactions right now. Let’s connect today so you have a trusted real estate professional on your side to provide the best advice on how to make a competitive offer on a home.

When stay-at-home mandates were enforced last year, many households realized their homes didn’t really fulfill their new lifestyle needs. An office (in some cases two), a media room, space for children to learn, a gym, and a large yard are all examples of amenities that became highly desirable almost overnight.
Zelman & Associates recently reported that sales of primary residences grew by 9% in 2020. That increase in demand was met by the lowest supply of homes for sale in history. High demand and low supply caused prices to skyrocket over the past twelve months. Here are three home price indexes released most recently that show how home values have risen:

• FHFA Agency House Price Index shows a 13.9% increase
• CoreLogic Home Price Insights Report shows an 11.3% increase
• S&P Case-Shiller U.S. National Home Price Index shows a 13.2% increase

Prices increased by double digits in every region of the country and in 19 of 20 major metros. Chicago was the only exception, where prices still rose by 9%.
What does this mean to those who purchased a second home during the pandemic?Many people didn’t want to give up a home in the city or close to their office. Instead, they purchased a larger second home farther away and moved there to stay safe and have more space. According to the same Zelman report, sales for second homes rose an astonishing 27% in 2020.
That large second-home retreat on a lake or in the mountains would demand a higher price than the average house. Let’s assume a buyer purchased such a home for $500,000. Assuming the middle 13.2% appreciation shown above, that home would now be worth about $566,000.
Those who bought second homes to improve their lifestyle during the height of the pandemic, or those who just wanted to be in a safer environment, also made a great investment.
What should these homeowners do now as the pandemic is receding, and the economy is reopening?The buyers of those second homes now have a decision to make. Many will move back to the original home they still own (the one that’s closer to work, friends, and family). Should they keep the second home? That could depend on answers to questions like these:

• Now that you may have to go back to the office (at least a few days a week) and students are required to physically attend school, would you still use the second house enough to warrant the expenses of an additional home?
• Would you go to the second home on most weekends, or would you return to the movie theater, attend sporting events, eat out at fine restaurants, or spend your time traveling again?

Bottom Line
If you purchased a larger second home during the pandemic, you were able to make day-to-day life much easier for those important to you. You also made it much safer. However, with those goals already accomplished, you now need to decide whether to continue paying the extra expenses or sell the house and cash in your profit. If you decide selling makes sense, let’s connect today to discuss the value of your second home.

The last year has put emphasis on the importance of one’s home. As a result, some renters are making the jump into homeownership while some homeowners are re-evaluating their current house and considering a move to one that better fits their current lifestyle. Understanding how housing affordability works and the main market factors that impact it may help those who are ready to buy a home narrow down the optimal window of time in which to make a purchase.
There are three main factors that go into determining how affordable homes are for buyers:

1. Mortgage Rates
2. Mortgage Payments as a Percentage of Income
3. Home Prices

The National Association of Realtors (NAR) produces a Housing Affordability Index. It takes these three factors into account and determines an overall affordability score for housing. According to NAR, the index:
“…measures whether or not a typical family earns enough income to qualify for a mortgage loan on a typical home at the national and regional levels based on the most recent price and income data.”
Their methodology states:
“To interpret the indices, a value of 100 means that a family with the median income has exactly enough income to qualify for a mortgage on a median-priced home. An index above 100 signifies that family earning the median income has more than enough income to qualify for a mortgage loan on a median-priced home, assuming a 20 percent down payment.”
So, the higher the index, the more affordable it is to purchase a home. Here’s a graph of the index going back to 1990:The blue bar represents today’s affordability. We can see that homes are more affordable now than they’ve been at any point since the housing crash when distressed properties (foreclosures and short sales) dominated the market. Those properties were sold at large discounts not seen before in the housing market for almost one hundred years.
Why are homes so affordable today?
Although there are three factors that drive the overall equation, the one that’s playing the largest part in today’s homebuying affordability is historically low mortgage rates. Based on this primary factor, we can see that it’s more affordable to buy a home today than at any time in the last eight years.
If you’re considering purchasing your first home or moving up to the one you’ve always hoped for, it’s important to understand how affordability plays into the overall cost of your home. With that in mind, buying while mortgage rates are as low as they are now may save you quite a bit of money over the life of your home loan.
Bottom Line
If you feel ready to buy, purchasing a home this summer may save you a significant amount of money over time based on historical affordability trends. Let’s connect today to determine if now is the right time for you to make your move.