Preview Orange County Real Estate Blog - The Aaronson Group

What’s the Latest with Mortgage Rates?

Recent headlines may leave you wondering what's next for mortgage rates. You may have previously heard there would be cuts this year that would bring rates down. That refers to the Federal Reserve (the Fed) and what they do to their Fed Funds Rate. Cutting or lowering the Fed Funds Rate doesn't directly determine mortgage rates but tends to impact them. But when the Fed met last week, a cut didn't happen — at least, not yet.

The Fed considered many factors in its recent decision, and most of them are complex. But you don't need to be bogged down by those finer details. What you want is the answer to this question: Does that mean mortgage rates aren't going to fall? Here's what you need to know.

Mortgage Rates Are Still Expected To Drop This…

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What Are Experts Saying About the Spring Housing Market?

If you’re planning to move soon, you might be wondering if there’ll be more homes to choose from, where prices and mortgage rates are headed, and how to navigate today’s market. If so, here’s what the professionals are saying about what’s in store for this season. 

Odeta Kushi, Deputy Chief Economist, First American: 

“. . . it seems our general expectation for the spring is that we will see a pickup in inventory. In fact, that already seems to be happening. But it won’t necessarily be enough to satiate demand.” 

Lisa Sturtevant, Chief Economist, Bright MLS: 

“There is still strong demand, as the large millennial population remains in the prime first-time homebuying range.” 

Danielle Hale, Chief…

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What Mortgage Rate Do You Need To Move?

If you’ve been considering buying a home, mortgage rates are probably at the top of your mind. They may even be why you’ve put your plans on hold. When rates climbed nearly 8% last year, some buyers found the numbers didn’t make sense for their budget anymore. That may be the case for you, too.
Data from Bright MLS shows the top reason buyers delayed their plans to move is due to high mortgage rates (see graph below):

David Childers, CEO at Keeping Current Matters, speaks to this statistic in the recent How’s The Market podcast:
“Three-quarters of buyers said, ‘We’re out’ due to mortgage rates. Here’s what I know going forward: That will change in 2024.”
That’s because mortgage rates have come down from their peak last October. And while…

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The Benefits of Downsizing When You Retire

If you’re looking at your expenses as you retire, saving money where you can has a lot of appeal. One long-standing, popular way to do that is by downsizing to a smaller home.  When you think about cutting down on your spending, the odds are that you will feel like making frequent purchases, like groceries and other goods.

But when you downsize your house, you often end up downsizing the bills that come with it, like your mortgage payment, energy costs, and maintenance requirements. Realtor.com shares:
“A smaller home typically means lower bills and less upkeep. Then there’s the potential windfall from selling your larger home and buying something smaller.”

That windfall is thanks to your home equity. If you’ve been in your house for a while,…

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The Spring Market Is a Sweet Spot if You’re Looking To Sell [INFOGRAPHIC]

• Wondering if now’s a good time to sell your house? Based on how many homes are on the market, there are two big reasons why this spring is looking so good for sellers. 
• Thanks to an uptick in inventory over the last year, you’ve got more options for your next home. But there are still fewer homes for sale than there’d normally be, meaning your house should stand out and get a lot of attention from buyers. 
• If you want to sell your house, this spring is the sweet spot. When you’re ready, chat with The Aaronson Group to get the ball rolling.  Call 949-388-5194 or Email info@previewochomes.com

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Why There Won’t Be a Recession That Tanks the Housing Market

There has been much talk of a recession over the past couple of years, which may leave you worried about a repeat of what we saw back in 2008. Here's a look at the latest expert projections to show why that isn't happening.

According to Jacob Channel, Senior Economist at LendingTree, the economy's pretty strong:
"At least right now, the fundamentals of the economy, despite some hiccups, are doing pretty good. While things are far from perfect, the economy is probably doing better than people want to give it credit for."

That might be why a recent survey from the Wall Street Journal shows only 39% of economists think there'll be a recession in the next year. That's way down from 61% projecting a recession just one year ago (see graph…

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Why Today’s Housing Supply Is a Sweet Spot for Sellers

Does selling your house right now make sense? The short answer is yes. And if you look at the current number of homes for sale, you'll see two reasons.
An article from Calculated Risk shows there are 15.6% more homes for sale now compared to the same week last year. That tells us inventory has grown. But going back to 2019, the previous typical year in the housing market, there are nearly 40% fewer homes available now:

Here's a breakdown of how this benefits you when you sell:

1. You have more options for your move
Are you considering selling because your current house is too big or small or because your needs have changed? If so, the year-over-year growth gives you more options for your home search. That means it may be easier to find what…

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The Dramatic Impact of Homeownership on Net Worth

If you're trying to decide whether to rent or buy a home this year, here's a powerful insight that could give you the clarity and confidence you need to decide.
Every three years, the Federal Reserve releases the Survey of Consumer Finances (SCF), which compares the net worth of homeowners and renters. The latest report shows the average homeowner's net worth is almost 40X greater than a renter's (see graph below):

A wealth gap exists between renters and homeowners because when you're a homeowner, your equity grows as your home appreciates in value and you make your mortgage payment each month. When you own a home, your monthly mortgage payment acts like a form of forced savings, eventually paying off when you decide to sell. As a renter, you'll…

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Some Experts Say Mortgage Rates May Fall Below 6% Later This Year

There’s a lot of confusion in the market about what’s happening with day-to-day movement in mortgage rates right now, but here’s what you need to know: compared to the near 8% peak last fall, mortgage rates have trended down overall.  And if you’re looking to buy or sell a home, this is a big deal. While they will continue to bounce around based on various economic drivers (like inflation and reactions to the consumer price index, or CPI), don’t let the short-term volatility distract you. The experts agree the overarching downward trend should continue this year.

While we won’t see the record-low rates homebuyers got during the pandemic, some experts think we should see rates dip below 6% later this year. As Dean Baker, senior economist at the…

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Expert Home Price Forecasts for 2024 Revised Up

Over the past few months, experts have revised their 2024 home price forecasts based on the latest data and market signals, and they're even more confident prices will rise, not fall. 

So, let's see exactly how experts' thinking has shifted – and what's caused the change. 

2024 home price forecasts: then and now 

The chart below shows what seven expert organizations think will happen to home prices in 2024. It compares their first 2024 home price forecasts (made at the end of 2023) with their newest projections: 

The middle column shows that, at first, these experts thought home prices would only go up a little this year. But if you look at the column on the right, you'll see they've all updated their forecasts and now think prices…

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