Art District
Sales Dropped last month …
On December 22nd 2015, the National Association of Realtors (NAR) released their latest Existing Home Sales Report which covered sales in November. The report revealed that sales:
“…fell 10.5 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.76 million in November (lowest since April 2014 at 4.75 million)…”
That revelation gave birth to a series of industry articles, some of which quoted pundits questioning whether the housing market was slowing. In actuality, there is one rather simple explanation to much of the falloff in sales last month. It is likely the implementation of the “Know Before You Owe” mortgage rule, commonly known as the TILA-RESPA Integrated Disclosure (TRID) rule, which went into effect on October 3. These regulations caused house closings to be delayed by an extra three days in November as shown in the graph below.
Three days might sound like a minimal difference. However, since there are only approximately 20 days in a month that a closing would normally take place (Mondays through Fridays), losing three days constitutes well over 10% of all closings. These sales are not lost. They are just moved into the next month’s numbers. In a DS News article on the subject also posted on December 22nd, Auction.com EVP Rick Sharga explained:
“The most likely cause for the weak sales numbers is a delay in processing loans due to the new TRID mortgage requirements imposed by the CFPB. This is the biggest change in mortgage document processing in many years, and there have been numerous reports within the industry of problems implementing the process and the new documentation that comes with it.”
So how is the housing market actually doing?
A better way to look at how well the housing market is doing is to look at the Foot Traffic Report from NAR which quantifies the number of prospective buyers that are actively looking for a home at the current time:
We can see immediately that demand to buy single family homes is increasing over the last few months – not decreasing.
Bottom Line
No matter what last month’s sales numbers show, the housing market is still doing well as demand remains strong.
Call 786.554.8063 or email us George@GeorgeAssal.com, WE are here to facilitate and help you during the process of buying, selling, or renting any real estate needs, which will result in reaching your financial goals quickly and with ease, visit our page www.GeorgeAssal.com .
Selling your House?
Here is what you should consider when selling your house:
- 5 REASONS TO SELL NOW
- HOW TO GET THE MOST MONEY FROM THE SALE OF YOUR HOME
- DON’T WAIT! MOVE UP TO THE HOUSE YOU ALWAYS WANTED
- THE IMPORTANCE OF USING AN AGENT WHEN SELLING YOUR HOME
- 5 DEMANDS TO MAKE ON YOUR REAL ESTATE AGENT
- HOME PRICES OVER THE LAST YEAR
- THE IMPACT OF RISING PRICES ON HOME APPRAISALS
- 5 REASONS YOU SHOULDN’T FOR SALE BY OWNER (FSBO)
- HOME EQUITY: YOU MAY HAVE MORE THAN YOU THINK?
- BABY BOOMERS FINDING FREEDOM IN RETIREMENT
- WHERE ARE MORTGAGE INTEREST RATES HEADED?
- HOW WILL MORTGAGE RATE HIKES IMPACT HOME SALES?
- TWO THINGS YOU DON’T NEED TO HEAR FROM YOUR LISTING AGENT (US)
- FSBO’s MUST BE READY TO NEGOTIATE
- FANNIE MAE AGREES: HIRE A PRO (US) TO SELL
Read full Seller(s) guide here
Call us 786.554.8063 or email us George@GeorgeAssal.com, WE are here to facilitate and help you during the process of buying, selling, or renting any real estate needs, which will result in reaching your financial goals quickly and with ease, visit our page www.GeorgeAssal.com
The Impact of Higher Interest Rates
Last week, an article in the Washington Post discussed a new ‘threat’ homebuyers will soon be facing: higher mortgage rates. The article revealed:
“The Mortgage Bankers Association expects that rates on 30-year loans could reach 4.8 percent by the end of next year, topping 5 percent in 2017. Rates haven’t been that high since the recession.”
How can this impact the housing market?
The article reported that recent analysis from Realtor.com found that –
“…as many as 7% of people who applied for a mortgage during the first half of the year would have had trouble qualifying if rates rose by half a percentage point.”
This doesn’t necessarily mean that those buyers negatively impacted by a rate increase would not purchase a home. However, it would mean that they would either need to come up with substantially more cash for a down payment or settle for a lesser priced home.
Below is a table showing how a jump in mortgage interest rates would impact the purchasing power of a prospective buyer on a $300,000 home.
In Conclusion
If you are considering a home purchase (either as a first time buyer or move-up buyer), purchasing sooner rather than later may make more sense from a pure financial outlook.
Tired of being a tenant? thinking of selling your home?, looking to upgrade? 1st time buyer(s)? buying your dream home? Call us 786.554.8063 or email us George@GeorgeAssal.com, WE are here to facilitate and help you during the process of buying, selling, or renting any real estate needs, which will result in reaching your financial goals quickly and with ease, visit our page www.GeorgeAssal.com
Onyx on the Bay – For Rent
Onyx on the Bay is the name given to the tallest building in the Onyx on the Bay is a luxury building/complex in Miami, Florida, United States. Located in northern Midtown Miami, the tower was completed in 2007.
It is 27 floors and 308 feet (94 m) tall with 118 units, there are six different floor plans raging in size from 886 to 3,386 SQF, there are also five penthouses. The building is located on Northeast 25th Street between Biscayne Avenue and the oceanfront, also known as the Art District; it is a development of BAP/GGM development.
The unit that I’m presenting you today, is a sensational 2 bedrooms and 2.5 bathrooms, completely renovated with, marble floors throughout including the balconies, custom made closets, Italian kitchen and granite counter tops.
Living in Onyx on the Bay is like living in a heaven with his beautiful exterior and interior design and their VIP service with 24hrs concierge. Onyx on the Bay is minutes away from Downtown Miami, Brickell, South Beach, Midtown, Shops and Restaurant.
Interested in Selling, Buying, Renting in Brickell, Downtown, Coconut Grove, Coral Gables and surrounding areas? Call me 786.554.8063 or email me George@GeorgeAssal.com, I can help, because working with someone who knows the numbers and area is crucial.
The ASSAL Team 