Luxe Austin Homes - homebuyers

"Mortgage Rates Go Up—Right as the Housing Market Melts Down"

Realtor.com writes, "as much of the country swelters under a heat dome, the housing market is experiencing its own meltdown.

Mortgage rates jumped to 6.81% for a 30-year fixed-rate loan for the week ending July 27, according to Freddie Mac. That’s up from last week’s average rate of 6.78%. And the welcome run of median home prices declining for 42 days flatlined for the week ending July 22.

“The annual decline in the median listing price evaporated, with prices tying year-ago levels this week,” says Realtor.com® Chief Economist Danielle Hale in her analysis.

What’s keeping home prices so high—and is there any way for homebuyers to find some sweet relief from the punishing real estate market this summer? We’ll break down what this latest real…

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"Stop Believin’! 4 Housing Market Myths Hurting Today’s Buyers and Sellers"

Realtor.com writes, "the housing market has been decidedly stuck of late. Sellers with low mortgage rates are holding on to their homes, leaving buyers with scant listings to choose from.

And buyers who do find a house face substantial economic challenges as median home prices and mortgage rates remain high.

With sellers and buyers at an impasse, misconceptions and outright myths are popping up on both sides about the state of the market on social channels and forums.

However, some of the supposed housing issues that are coming up time and again aren’t true. Here are the four biggest myths about the current housing market and why experts say they’re wrong.

1. The housing market is about to crash, just like in 2008

Today’s buy-sell…

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"What Are FHA-Approved Condos?"

Realtor.com shares, "an FHA-approved condo is a property that can be purchased using FHA loans—or loans that are insured by the Federal Housing Administration. These FHA loans are for first-time homebuyers (or someone who hasn’t owned a home in the previous three years).

The fantastic news about FHA-approved condos is that these properties require lower down payments and have looser credit requirements than conventional loans. The not-so-great news is that FHA-approved condos may require homebuyers to jump through a few extra hoops.

So what requirements must these condominiums meet to be approved by the FHA? And where should you go to search for available properties?

What are FHA-approved condos?

FHA condos are simply residential…

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"Austin's housing market continues to normalize as options grow for buyers and sellers, new report says"

CultureMap Austin writes, "the real estate environment in Austin is continuing to normalize and become more favorable, leading to greater opportunities for both buyers and sellers.

Faith in the housing market can be seen through May's active listings, climbing up to 8,960 homes, which is nearly 1,000 more than in March 2023.

"Last month’s housing market activity demonstrates not only a stable market, but one where optimism for the months ahead continues to grow," said 2023 ABoR president Ashley Jackson in a release. "Real estate remains the most powerful long-term investment and having a trusted expert in your corner is crucial."

Pending sales slid ever so slightly by half a percentage point, to 3,243 pending sales. Housing inventory has…

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"Homebuilding starts to pick back up as buyers adjust to new pricing norms in tight market"

Austin Business Journal reports, "after months of slowdown in the wake of weaker buyer demand, homebuilders are starting to pick back up on construction — and feeling more confident about the housing market since mortgage rates surged last year.

Privately-owned housing starts in May were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.63 million, a 21.7% increase from the April estimate of 1.34 million, the U.S. Census Bureau reported this week. Meanwhile, privately owned housing units authorized by building permits last month were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.49 million, 5.2% higher than in April but 12.7% less than the May 2022 rate.

The jump in home starts observed last month is notable, said Kelly Mangold, a principal at RCLCO Real…

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"Is an All-Cash Offer on a House Always a Good Idea? The True Risks and Rewards"

Realtor.com writes, "ah, the all-cash offer. If you’re a home buyer with this ace up your sleeve, you probably have a swagger in your step as you tour homes, looking for the perfect property. And in light of today’s rising mortgage rates, the thought of saving all that monthly interest on a loan makes paying in cash that much sweeter.

Home sellers swoon over all-cash offers for one simple reason: It means there’s no doubt that you’ve got the coin to close the deal.

All-cash home buyers have a distinct advantage over those who need a mortgage, because there’s no guarantee that lenders will fork over the money. A lot can get in the way of that happening, from a subpar credit score to a poor home appraisal and beyond. All these what-ifs are…

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"Yay! Mortgage Rates Just Dropped—and Now There’s Even More Good News"

Realtor.com writes, "mortgage rates have finally dipped, after three panic-inducing weeks of climbing upward.

For the week ending June 8, the average 30-year fixed mortgage rate sank to 6.71%, down from the previous week’s 6.79%, according to Freddie Mac.

And that’s not where the good news ends.

Home price growth, which has been spiraling skyward since the COVID-19 pandemic, has also “slowed to a halt,” according to Danielle Hale, chief economist for Realtor.com® in her recent analysis of the latest housing data.

Indeed, median listing prices came in a mere 0.2% higher for the week ending June 3 compared with this same week last year. That’s the lowest level in the history of Realtor.com data, which goes back to 2016.

Yet despite this…

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"The Housing Market Has a ‘Chicken and Egg’ Problem—but Buyers Have Finally Hatched the Perfect Workaround"

Realtor.com writes, "anyone who’s tried to buy or sell a home lately is no doubt painfully aware that today’s real estate market has slowed down considerably—but why?

A new Realtor.com® report sums it up as the “chicken and egg” problem. Allow us to explain.

It all starts with mortgage rates—which are about 1 percentage point higher than last year, hovering in the mid-6% range. This is a formidable deterrent not only for buyers, but also for sellers, who feel “locked in” to their current properties (along with the lower mortgage rates they got years earlier).

As a result, even homebuyers who are willing to pay high rates are finding few homes for sale, with May clocking 22.7% fewer new listings than last year.

“Many sellers report being…

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"1,200-home Adelton neighborhood rising in Bastrop"

Austin Business Journal reports, "work is underway on a 348-acre mixed-use neighborhood in Bastrop and the search is on for commercial tenants to set up shop on three sites.

Homebuilders broke ground in October on the master-planned development, called Adelton, off State Highway 21 and Farm-to-Market 20. Plans call for 1,200 homes, 125,000 square feet of commercial space, four miles of trails and 50 acres of parks, according to a May announcement from developer West Bastrop Village Ltd., an entity tied to Austin-based Benchmark Land Development Inc.

Phase one of the project, which is estimated to take 10-15 years, is underway with homebuilders David Weekley Homes and Empire Communities already completing two model homes. Developers are now eager…

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"U.S. Housing Market Recovery Is Being Held Back by Limited Listings and Fluctuating Mortgage Rates"

Realtor.com reports, "The numbers: Sales of previously-owned homes in the U.S. fell 3.4% in April for the second month in a row, as buyers continue to deal with low levels of home listings and see-sawing mortgage rates.

Sales of existing homes in the U.S. fell to an annual rate of 4.28 million in April, the National Association of Realtors said Thursday.

That’s the number of homes that would be sold over an entire year if sales took place at the same rate in every month as it did in April. The numbers are seasonally adjusted.

The drop in sales wasn’t as bad as what economists on Wall Street had expected. They forecast existing-home sales to total 4.26 million in April.

But compared with April 2022, home sales were down 23.2%.

Key…

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