Reanna Martinez

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2016 Homebuyer Hardship

2016 Homebuyer Hardship by myCAREexpert
2016 Homebuyer Hardship by myCAREexpert

Homebuyers Face Fierce Competition in Today’s Marketplace

 

Packed open houses.  Bidding wars.  Rising prices.  If you are a California homebuyer in the market today, you are up against some hefty competition for available homes.

California is home to some of the highest priced housing markets, both in terms of renting or buying a home.  Housing is becoming increasingly unaffordable in many cities, with San Francisco, San Jose, and Los Angeles listed among the highest rental markets in the nation, according to a study by ApartmentList.com.  Rising rental rates in California have inspired many residents to consider buying a home as opposed to burning 30% or more of their paycheck on rent.  However, would-be homebuyers are facing fierce competition in the marketplace today.

This spring, homebuyers may struggle to find a house.  Listings are growing as they normally do this time of year, according to chief economist, Jonathan Smoke, of Realtor.com, but because demand has been growing faster than supply, homes are selling faster, and prices are going up.  An index by Redfin that measures requests for property visits rose in the first two months of the year to the highest level since the brokerage began tracking such data in 2012.

The share of first-time homebuyers dropped to 30% in February, down from 32% in January.  Chief economist, Doug Duncan, of Fannie Mae suggests that prices will rise while limited inventory will put a cap on transactions.  The shortage is more acute for starter homes.  While first-time homebuyers aren’t necessarily millennials, people age 35 or younger have become housing’s largest segment.  This demographic is facing weaker affordability as home prices climb faster than incomes.  Starter-home buyers on average now need to devote 38% of their income to housing costs, up from 32% four years ago according to Ralph McLaughlin, chief economist of Trulia.

The main issue continues to be a supply and affordability problem.  Finding the right property at an affordable price is burdening many potential buyers.

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0 Responses

  1. Well I have always been told and have been brought up to think that competition is good, but I cannot help but think I always bear the brunt of it. When it comes to real estate, too, I think that most of us average people feel this way quite often. Makes it that much more important to strike when the time is right, though.

      1. Sometimes it doesnt happen like that, or sometimes you can get a word deal with the seller and reserve the house for you even when you know he’s going to get higher bids, so yes.

      2. Well I try to stay a little more optimistic than that, but I can certainly understand that mentality. I have been there, but sometimes you have to hope for some luck I suppose.

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