This comprehensive Real Estate Market Report provides an overview of the Wasatch Front real estate market. We believe our clients should have access to information that facilitates thoughtful reals estate decisions. The Wasatch Front Market remains strong with highly segmented areas. The city, it’s neighborhoods, and outlying areas differ significantly in terms of price, home type, features and amenities. These statistics cover entire counties and are general in natures.
Our Predictions:
As strong demand and low inventory levels persist, we expect appreciation to continue, sales to remain strong, and a variety of development options to emerge across all sectors of the Wasatch Front. While we anticipate mortgage rates will continue to rise mildly, we also expect increased buyer activity, especially at below or median prices. With a strong regional economy on the Wasatch Front, we see no sign of a market downturn in the foreseeable future.
Data interpretation, judgment, and historical context are key elements to making informed decisions: contact your Berkshire Hathaway Home Properties for guidance on navigating the market.
Stephen C. Roney, Chief Executive Officer & Owner
Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices Utah Properties
Linda Secrist & Associates are the top selling team in luxury homes in the SLC Market. They have received countless awards over the past 20 years, including “Sales Team of The Year” for over 10 years! Linda Secrist is in the top 100 Agents in the World in luxury residential real estate. If you’re searching for homes in Sandy, Salt Lake, Cottonwood Heights, Millcreek, Draper, South Jordan, Bountiful, Centerville, Farmington or anywhere in northern Utah, Linda Secrist & Associates are the real estate agents to call. If you’re buying or selling a home, don’t hesitate to text or call us at 801-455-9999!
Offered At: $629,900 Unbelievable Price for this beautiful location and home! Nestled high in the beautiful hills of Bountiful, on a flat .34 Acre lot and street with over-sized side entry driveway and 3 car garage, is this stunning family home! You'll love the spacious MAIN FLOOR MASTER SUITE with two walk-in closets, massive vaulted ceilings, open entry, huge great room off the kitchen, four bedrooms upstairs (including second master suite). Offering beautiful valley, lake and mountain views from nearly every window! A cozy formal living or the large formal dining rooms would also make a great main floor office. Entertain on the full length deck overlooking the city and lake. The over sized walk-out basement to covered patio, flat yard (room for pool), offers a huge 2nd family room/kitchen * tons of storage and plenty of room for all of your family needs. INCREDIBLE PRICE!
Linda Secrist & Associates are the top selling team in luxury homes in the SLC Market. They have received countless awards over the past 20 years, including “Sales Team of The Year” for over 10 years! Linda Secrist is in the top 100 Agents in the World in luxury residential real estate. If you’re searching for homes in Sandy, Salt Lake, Cottonwood Heights, Millcreek, Draper, South Jordan, Bountiful, Centerville, Farmington or anywhere in northern Utah, Linda Secrist & Associates are the real estate agents to call. If you’re buying or selling a home, don’t hesitate to call us at 801-455-9999!
WHAT LINDA SECRIST & ASSOCIATES SAY ABOUT THE 2018 HOUSING FORECAST
2018- Millennials favor homeownership: Millennials are the largest living generation and Pew Research notes that their households dominate the ranks of the nation's renters compared with previous generations. As the generation matures (the oldest are at 34 years of age), seventy-two percent wish to become homeowners. 2018- Demand is outpacing supply: According to Freddie Mac research, the hurricane season that hit the southern and eastern coastal areas is exacerbating a market already short on homes. Additionally, home prices are predicted to rise 4.9 percent nationally. 2018- Unemployment remains low: The unemployment rate remains at a low 4.2 percent, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.Due to this, many buyers have the income needed to shop for homes. 2018- New home construction lags demand: 'New construction is receiving a boost by low mortgage rates, an ongoing shortage in existing homes for sale, and solid builder confidence,' says Robert Dietz, Chief Economist with the National Association of Home Builders. Currently home builders are struggling to meet the demand for new homes, according to the U.S. Census. Nationally, there is currently a five month supply at today’s rate of sales. 2018- Mortgage rates under four percent: Nationally, the average interest rates on conventional purchase-money mortgages decreased in the fall to less than four percent, reported the Federal Housing Finance Agency.
Market conditions suggest near-term winter and spring home buying will remain brisk in 2018. We expect an increase in spring buyer activity which will continue throughout the summer.
Home Selling Tips
REASONS TO SELL IN THE WINTER INSTEAD OF WAITING FOR SPRING:
'Is this a good time to be selling my home?' There are many factors that go into answering that question such as market conditions and mortgage rates; however, many homeowners go into home selling with the preconceived notion that listing in the spring is best. That notion could not be further from the truth! Of course, many markets across the country experience a selling frenzy in the spring, however that doesn't mean spring is the best or only time to sell your home.
Here are a few reasons why selling in the winter may be a better decision than waiting until spring. Less inventory = less competition As mentioned, spring is usually the time when most sellers decide to list their homes. Meaning that the market becomes saturated with new and re-listed homes in the spring. Winter, on the other hand, often see lower inventory and therefore less competition for your home. Buyers looking for homes in the winter won't have as many comparable homes to see and therefore are more likely to schedule an appointment to view your home. Winter Staging Staging can be one of the most important components in selling a home. A well-staged home can make or break a showing. In the winter months, staging may consist of seasonal decorations, warm cookies at an open house, and familiar warm scents. A cozy, warm, seasonally staged home in the winter months may be that extra touch a potential buyer needs to see themselves in the home and make an offer. Buyers are always out there Homes are bought every single day of the year. Many home sellers believe that 'buyers only buy in the spring,' clearly that is false. No matter the time of year, if a buyer is serious, they will look for a home. Additionally, many companies hire and relocate employees during the 4th quarter of the year. Due to this, many relocation buyers have to find a home in the winter months. Faster transactions In the winter months there are typically fewer real estate transactions than in the spring. Due to this, mortgage lenders have fewer loans to process, home inspectors have more time for inspections, and moving companies have more flexible schedules; all of this can lead to expedited transactions and closings. Your agent is ready to sell your home Your agent will always be ready to sell your home whether it's spring, summer, fall, or winter. An experienced agent will know how to market your home based on the current season. Your agent will create a personalized marketing plan designed to sell your home during the winter months.
If you think now is the right time to sell your home, send us an email or give us a call today.
Linda Secrist & Associates are the top selling team in luxury homes in the SLC Market. They have received countless awards over the past 20 years, including “Sales Team of The Year” for over 10 years! Linda Secrist is in the top 100 Agents in the World in luxury residential real estate. If you’re searching for homes in Sandy, Salt Lake, Cottonwood Heights, Millcreek, Draper, South Jordan, Bountiful, Centerville, Farmington or anywhere in northern Utah, Linda Secrist & Associates are the real estate agents to call. If you’re buying or selling a home, don’t hesitate to text or call us at 801-455-9999!
Watch for these trends in the home market and mortgages:
The housing market picture is likely to improve in 2018:
Home prices are expected to climb, but not as fast
More houses could be for sale toward the end of the year, giving home buyers a greater selection to choose from
Homeowners will have more equity to borrow from
Yet in other ways, 2018 might continue to be challenging, especially for home buyers. Mortgage rates are likely to rise, reducing affordability.
Here are 10 home and mortgage trends to expect in 2018:
1. Home prices decelerate
Good news for first-time home buyers: Home-price appreciation is expected to cool down in 2018 after a torrid couple of years.
Home prices rose 6.3% in 2016, according to the Federal Housing Finance Agency. They’re on track to exceed 6% in 2017, too. But for next year, the median forecast among six industry and lender groups is for a 4.1% increase in existing home prices nationwide.
Why the slowdown? One factor is home construction. Economists expect the construction of single-family houses to rise sharply in 2018, based on building permit applications. The median estimate has single-family housing starts rising about 8% in 2018, to roughly 912,500 new houses.
2. More homes for sale
Home buyers are struggling to find houses for sale. The shortages are especially acute for the kinds of homes that first-time buyers tend to get. Among the reasons for the tight supply:
Many baby boomers are content to age in their homes instead of downsizing
Investors bought millions of homes after the housing bubble burst, and they’re making too much money as landlords to sell
Home builders make more profit from expensive houses than entry-level houses, so that’s what they’re constructing
Also see: Why aren’t there enough houses to buy?
But there’s some hope for 2018: Realtor.com predicts that the housing supply pinch will begin to ease late in the year.
“It looks like we could get to a point where we’re seeing growth in inventory sometime in the fall of 2018,” says Danielle Hale, chief economist for Realtor.com.
3. Home sales could rise
Resales of existing homes are expected to rise modestly in 2018. The median estimate is that existing home sales will rise 2.5%, to 5.6 million units.
Meanwhile, sales of new homes are expected to rise a median of 7%, to 653,500 newly built single-family houses.
According to Realtor.com, cities in the South will show the most sales growth in 2018. Hale says she expects 6% existing home sales growth, particularly in markets such as Dallas; Tulsa, Oklahoma; Little Rock, Arkansas; and Charlotte, North Carolina. She says those places are not as “regulation constrained,” they have strong regional economies and developers have plenty of vacant land to build on.
4. Mortgage rates head up
Mortgage rates are expected to rise in 2018. CoreLogic, a data provider for the real-estate industry, averaged six forecasts of mortgage rates, arriving at a consensus view that the 30-year fixed will average 4.7% in December 2018. In November 2017, the 30-year, fixed-rate mortgage averaged 4.07%.
“Not only are mortgage rates higher, but mortgage rates will be at the highest level since 2011,” Nothaft said at the Urban Institute symposium. “So we’re looking at an environment, going forward, where this era of cheap mortgage rates will largely be behind us.” See: Today’s interest rates
Interest rates are notoriously resistant to prediction, though. At the beginning of 2017, most people expected mortgage rates to rise steadily throughout the year. And they did rise — for a few weeks. The average 30-year fixed peaked in mid-March 2017 at 4.58%, according to NerdWallet’s daily survey. Then it declined, dipping slightly below 4% a few times in the summer, before moving upward slightly in the fall.
5. Affordability declines
If, as expected, home prices and mortgage rates go up in 2018, homes will be less affordable.
For example, if mortgage rates rise to 4.7% toward the end of 2018, and the median price of existing homes rises by 4.1%, then monthly mortgage payments for a typical house would rise substantially.
But according to an Urban Institute analysis, middle-class families in much of the country still have some financial wiggle room if rates and prices rise in 2018. Most home buyers don’t appear to stretch to the limits of affordability, the Urban Institute wrote.
6. More equity, more HELOCs
As home values rise, homeowners gain equity. And banks expect millions of homeowners to borrow against that equity.
About 1.6 million homeowners are predicted to get new home equity lines of credit in 2018, a 16% increase over 2017, according to a recent TransUnion study. The credit bureau says 67% of homeowners have enough equity to get HELOCs, and 80% of those borrowers have high credit scores. Don’t miss: These are the hottest real-estate markets in the U.S.
TransUnion forecasts that 10 million homeowners will get HELOCs from 2018 through 2022, double the number of new lines of credit in the five years before that.
7. Security headaches continue
Thieves are stealing down payments from home buyers by combining email hacking with wire fraud. And there’s no sign of it slowing.
Complaints of this type of wire fraud skyrocketed by 480% in 2016, according to the 2016 annual report (the latest available) from the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center. Lenders and title companies say the problem worsened in 2017, and that they fend off this form of fraud constantly.
The best way to avoid becoming a victim: When you receive emailed instructions for wiring money, call your agent to verify. The email may be a fake, designed to trick you into wiring money into a thief’s account.
8. More options for people with credit issues
A few specialty lenders are focusing on nontraditional mortgages. For example, Angel Oak Mortgage Solutions in Atlanta targets the borrower “who has had a life event, so they lost their house or had to file bankruptcy or things got really bad, but they’ve now got their feet back on the ground and they’re ready to buy their next house,” says Tom Hutchens, the lender’s senior vice president of sales and marketing.
Several lenders offer interest-only mortgages, and even loans with limited income documentation. These mortgages are dubbed “non-QM” because they don’t meet Fannie Mae’s and Freddie Mac’s plain-vanilla “qualified mortgage” rules. One prominent non-QM lender, Impac Mortgage Holdings, plans to begin securitizing these loans early in 2018.
9. Lenders embracing automation
Mortgage lenders continue to pour money into automating the loan-application process. The best-known example is Rocket Mortgage by Quicken Loans. But Quicken isn’t the only lender that embraces automation. Some lenders, such as loanDepot, cook up their own automation in-house, while software providers such as Blend and Roostify help large and small banks to automate applications. Now a few lenders want to use automation to guide borrowers to loan products that best suit them.
10. Tax reform affects buyers and owners
Tax reform preserves the old capital gains exclusion, but the mortgage interest tax deduction is treated differently. Effective next year, the new law reduces the maximum amount of mortgage debt to acquire a first or second residence for which you can claim itemized interest expense deductions from $1 million (or $500,000 if you use married filing separate status) to $750,000 (or $375,000 if you use married filing separate status). The new tax law limits your deduction for state and local income and property taxes to a combined total of $10,000 ($5,000 if you use married filing separate status).
Linda Secrist & Associates are the top selling team in luxury homes in the SLC Market. They have received countless awards over the past 20 years, including “Sales Team of The Year” for over 10 years! Linda Secrist is in the top 100 Agents in the World in luxury residential real estate. If you’re searching for homes in Sandy, Salt Lake, Cottonwood Heights, Millcreek, Draper, South Jordan, Bountiful, Centerville, Farmington or anywhere in northern Utah, Linda Secrist & Associates are the real estate agents to call. If you’re buying or selling a home, don’t hesitate to text or call us at 801-455-9999!
Linda Secrist & Associates was the 2008 Salt Lake Board of REALTORS® Small Group of the Year and is consistently in the top 1% of realtors nationwide.
Attend an open house this weekend and peak inside some of Utah's most elegant real estate.
Year.
