A Message from our Newsletter Sponsor,
Andrea Chirich:
Holiday Gratitude
This is a wonderful time of year to reflect on gratitude and count the blessings we have in our lives. It is also a time for looking forward to the new year and what plans we have to elevate our lives, our mood,
our situation, or maybe elevate our level of peace. I so enjoy taking time to reach out to everyone who makes my life rich and full, and being grateful they are part of my life!
As for looking forward, not as enjoyable is my planning for the next year. Working on my business plan gives me structure and direction to achieve my goals over the next year. I wish I enjoyed it as much as thanking people, but I do recognize how central it is to helping others with their goals and dreams. So, I do spend a great deal of time creating my business plan for the following year, a task with which I am currently knee deep!
We are all interested in what is going on with the housing market. I’ve spent hours dissecting the numbers as I market my Sellers homes, help my current buyers, and prepare my 2024 Business Plan.
The easiest way to explain the housing market is that no one is really 100% sure! What we can say with certainty is the inventory of available homes for sale remains down over 40% from pre-pandemic levels. We also know that the trend line for people planning to purchase a home in the next year continues to
trend upward. It bounces around a bit, but the trend remains up. That will keep the demand for homes up, while the inventory of available homes remains low.
Those two dynamics will keep the price of homes stable, or slightly increasing. Of the top 20 metro areas used to measure home prices, 9 showed appreciation of homes at 1+%. The other 11 metro areas
ranged from home price increases of .5% - .9%. Overall home prices are not decreasing but holding steady or modestly increasing.
The higher interest rates are a true hinderance to many Buyers, especially with the higher home prices. How do we combat that? Well, for some Buyers multi-generational living is a great answer! My column last month talked about multi-generational living and now we are seeing FHA and Fannie Mae help promote with expanded financing options for homes with additional dwelling units, or ADUs. The FHA is offering additional funding options for such homes, and Fannie Mae will accept 5% down for multi-generational homes versus the standard 15-25%.
Multi-generational living is not for all families. But, if it is an arrangement that may work for your family, there are many benefits to be realized. Together you can create a new living situation and savings of economies.
If you would like to explore this topic more, or have questions, I am happy to be a resource. Please reach out and allow me to answer your questions so you can make the best decisions for your family! I
am grateful for the opportunity to share this information with all of you! Happy Holidays!
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