Three of the Latest Reports Show Housing Market Is Strong

Three of the Latest Reports Show Housing Market Is Strong

The residential real estate market is remaining resilient as the country still struggles to beat the COVID-19 pandemic. Three separate reports recently revealed how the housing market is still showing growth. Here’s a look at each one.

  1. Ivy Zelman’s Real Estate Broker Survey

The survey explains that purchaser demand remains strong:

“This month’s overall homebuyer demand rating…was easily the strongest sequential gain in our survey history…Strength continues to be led by the entry-level…While high-end demand is less robust in an absolute sense, there has also been relative improvement, with contacts attributing incremental improvement to the stock market’s rebound, record low mortgage rates and luxury customers trading out of high-priced cities.”

  1. The National Association of Home Builders Housing Market Index

The index reveals that builder confidence has returned to levels last seen prior to the pandemic:

“In a strong signal that the housing market is ready to lead a post-COVID economic recovery, builder confidence in the market for newly-built single-family homes jumped 14 points to 72 in July, according to the latest National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index (HMI). The HMI now stands at the solid pre-pandemic reading in March before the outbreak affected much of the nation.”

  1. The realtor.com Housing Market Recovery Index

This index leverages a weighted average of four key components of the housing industry, tracking each of the following:

Housing Demand – Growth in online search activity

Home Price – Growth in asking prices

Housing Supply – Growth of new listings

Pace of Sales – Difference in time-on-market

It then compares the current status “to the last week of January 2020 market trend, as a baseline for pre-COVID market growth. The overall index is set to 100 in this baseline period. The higher a market’s index value, the higher its recovery and vice versa.”

The latest results came in at 101, with realtor.com explaining: “The U.S. Housing Market has recovered from the immediate disruption caused by the COVID pandemic and returned to January 2020 growth levels.”

 

Bottom Line

Real estate brokers, home builders, and industry data all agree that the housing market has surged back to pre-COVID levels, showing growth, strength, and incredible resilience.

 

Leisure Village Annual Pass Changes

Annual Pass System Changed for LV’s Safety and Health
 
LV’s familiar annual passes that enabled relatives and friends of residents and contractors to enter through entrance gates will become useless relics next month. A new computer-centered system will replace them on September 1.  Driven by health concerns surrounding Covid-19, annual passes will reside in an online file accessed only by LV’s Security Staff when a driver at a gate shows a valid driver’s license.  No more paper permits on the dash or in hand; that license must match with the onscreen information.
LVA wants to prevent residents, business people, and staff from the potential danger of physically handling paper forms. Applications can be picked up at the Main gate now and dropped off in a box at the Main Gate, where questions can be answered without personal contact. “This is safer for everyone,” explains Officer Danny Camacho. “And it will increase our security. It will stop people from trading or sharing passes or from driving in without a license.”
More than 3000 paper passes were issued last year. Sgt. Camacho acknowledges it could be more time consuming as the officers log into the computer to check identification. “But if the driver has his license ready, it will be quick,” he adds, particularly as LV’s officers become familiar with the system. There will be no public access to that computer file.
Applications are available now at the Main Gate. They are also available online at www.leisurevillage.org, click on forms. The new Annual Pass System will go into effect on Tuesday, September 1.
http://www.ILoveLeisureVillage.com

Beautiful Leisure Village Home for Sale – 8127 Village 8

Welcome to this lovely 2-bedroom, 2-bathroom, 1064 square foot Capri model located VERY CLOSE to the REC CENTER on a greenbelt in 55+ Leisure Village. This was one of the original models and has an extra side entrance to the garage. As you walk inside, you’ll love the open feeling w/ the vaulted ceiling in the spacious living/dining room. This home has been freshly painted & is upgraded w/ plantation shutters & ceiling fans. The eat-in kitchen has plenty of cabinets, white appliances, double-sink & tile flooring. Both bedrooms are nice-sized w/ carpet & mirrored closets. There are 2 full bathrooms, one w/ combination bathtub/shower w/ glass enclosure & the other w/ large walk-in shower. The patio is nice-sized with no neighbors behind & has a block wall w/ trellis for additional privacy. There is a one-car garage w/ laundry hook-ups & direct access. Leisure Village residents enjoy 18 hole – par 3 golf, tennis, heated swimming pool & spa, fitness center, wood shop, ceramics, billiards, lawn chess, shuffleboard, paddle tennis, and a very long list of clubs for every interest. All of this and more within the security of living in a premium guard-gated community. This is the one you’ve been waiting for. Welcome Home!

Please call/text Sharron (805-443-1998) or Meryll (805-405-0411) for showings. We look forward to giving you a tour of Leisure Village!

http://www.ILoveLeisureVillage.com

Mortgage Rates Hit Record Lows for Three Consecutive Weeks

Over the past several weeks, Freddie Mac has reported the average 30-year fixed mortgage rate dropping to record lows, all the way down to 3.03%. Last week’s reported rate reached the lowest point in the history of the survey, which dates back to 1971.

What does this mean for buyers?

This is huge for homebuyers. Those currently taking advantage of the increasing affordability that comes with historically low interest rates are winning big. According to Sam Khater, Chief Economist at Freddie Mac:

“The summer is heating up as record low mortgage rates continue to spur homebuyer demand.”

In addition, move.com notes:

“Summer home buying season is off to a roaring start. As buyers flooded into the market, realtor.com® monthly traffic hit an all-time high of 86 million unique users in June 2020, breaking May’s record of 85 million unique users. Realtor.com® daily traffic also hit its highest level ever of 7 million unique users on June 25, signaling that despite the global pandemic buyers are ready to make a purchase.”

Clearly, buyers are capitalizing on today’s low rates. As shown in the chart below, the average monthly mortgage payment decreases significantly when rates are as low as they are today.

A lower monthly payment means savings that can add up significantly over the life of a home loan. It also means that qualified buyers may be able to purchase more home for their money. Maybe that’s a bigger home than what they’d be able to afford at a higher rate, an increasingly desirable option considering the amount of time families are now spending at home given today’s health crisis.

Bottom Line

If you’re in a position to buy a home this year, it’s a great time to reach out to a local real estate professional to initiate the process while mortgage rates are historically low.