Good Monday Morning! In case you haven't noticed, there are more For Sale signs popping up around town. In fact, it seems that there are more signs now than there have been in years. Are these sellers late for the party, or will the market be able to keep its current home price level with more competition? The answer, of course, is mortgage interest rates. If mortgage interest rates decline, there will be more buyers to buy up an increased inventory of homes for sale. If rates go up or remain stagnant, increased inventory could bring on a much tougher market for home sellers. The other wild ca ..read more

Good Monday Morning! Finally, some relief with mortgage rates. The question is, will this trend continue? It's no secret that high mortgage interest rates have created a huge slowdown in home sales across the nation. Expected rate cuts this year by the Fed turned into disappointment as inflation numbers continue to climb, and the Fed determined that lower rates would only fuel this fire. There are many opinions out there as to what lies ahead; the following is from a recent article from "Realtor.com." Mortgage rates finally fell for the first time in five weeks, with the average rate for a 30 ..read more

Good Monday Morning! The following article from NAR gives a great description of the housing market that we have lived through over the previous year and the one we find ourselves in today.  Home sales in 2023 were the worst in nearly 30 years. The micro-level reasons—owners locked into low mortgage rates, low inventory, and rising interest rates—explain the fall in sales. But looking at the big picture, it makes less sense. Last year’s 4 million existing-home sales were the same as in 1995, when there were 70 million fewer people living in the U.S. The massive stored-up housing demand co ..read more

Good Monday Morning! Home sales, both locally and nationally, are slowing again. After a short spurt of strong activity in our local Eugene and Springfield area, activity levels have once again slowed due to rising mortgage interest rates, high inflation, and a very sluggish economy. Even with all of this negativity, home sales remain better than you would anticipate. This certainly gives hope for a strong rebound if mortgage rates decline again and the economy strengthens. If you are considering a home sale, don't hesitate. Right now, this could be the strongest housing market we see this yea ..read more

Good Monday Morning! Many would be home buyers and sellers are fearful of our current housing market. It certainly is a much different market than what we were experiencing just over a year ago. The reality is that mortgage interest rates in the 2.5% to 3.5% range are unrealistic, and the fact that we had them available for so many years was a blessing. Those who have been in the Real Estate market for years knew that these rates would end. They couldn't last forever! Mortgage interest rates are cyclical, as is the national housing market. When I purchased my first home, the interest rate was ..read more

Good Monday Morning! Home sales in the Eugene and Springfield area fell slightly in March. New listings hitting the market were slightly up, and at the same time, the total inventory of homes on the market fell. This is just a continuation of the same market that we have been in for quite some time. I see little change on the horizon unless we see a significant decrease in mortgage interest rates. A decrease in rates is not likely at this time, as inflation continues to be a thorn in the economy's side and the Fed has announced that there will be no rate decreases in the near future. Overall ..read more

Good Monday Morning! The national Real Estate world was full of facts and non-facts in regards to the recent NAR settlement over brokerage fees. I am doing this article this morning because many clients have had questions over what is going on, and home buyers have been in fear that they will now have to pay fees that they did not have to pay previously in a Real Estate transaction. The truth is that, yes, there will be some changes coming soon, but the overall picture of how we buy and sell Real Estate will change very little for most home sellers and home buyers. This is an ever-changing sit ..read more

Good Monday Morning! At the beginning of this year, national financial experts were mostly in agreement that the Fed would go through a series of interest rates drops in 2024. They thought that with inflation numbers predicted to decline, the Fed would need to do this to get the economy back on track. So far, the Fed has failed to drop rates and has even made it look as if a rate decline program is not in the picture any time soon. Recent unfavorable inflation rates could be putting a stranglehold on Fed rates declining any time soon. With that reality, mortgage interest rates remain around th ..read more

Good Monday Morning! Mortgage interest rates have gone up recently, but they are remaining below the highs in late 2023. There is a silver lining to this trend, though. With rates up slightly, demand for housing is down, and home inventories are beginning to creep higher. With more competition and less demand, home owners trying to sell their homes are becoming more motivated. This is something that we have not seen take place in our local Eugene and Springfield housing market for years. The recent tick-up in mortgage rates is not enough to have a large effect on payments, but is it enough to ..read more

Good Monday Morning!  Many homebuyers are choosing to wait in regards to purchasing a home. They are doing this in hopes of seeing mortgage interest rates drop over the months ahead.  My thoughts are that this may not be the best strategy. First of all, there is no promise that mortgage rates will decline soon. It has been widely publicized that we will see mortgage rates drop later this year. This could be wishful thinking as we watch inflation rates continue to climb and our overall economy is not fairing well.  At the same time, the government continues out-of-control spendin ..read more