Market flooded, but buyers still buying
By Brian C. LouwersC & G Newspaper, Warren Staff Writer
WARREN —While the housing market continues to soar nationwide, local real estate experts said the sputtering economy in southeast Michigan has translated into a reduced number of new home sales this year.
That said, homes are still being bought and sold in the market. The experts said that’s particularly true for first-time buyers looking to take advantage of a plethora of creative mortgage options and interest rates that, still under 7 percent, are considerably low.
“I started in real estate, and they [rates] were 17-and-a-half percent,” said Judy Palmer, an associate broker with RE/MAX Showcase Homes, in Birmingham. “There’s still so many mortgage programs that make it comfortable for buyers who feel that it’s affordable, and it’s definitely a tax advantage. Most of the people I’ve been dealing with for probably the last year or more have been first-time buyers. Ironically, many of my sellers have been people moving out of state to accept jobs elsewhere.”
Palmer said sale closings are down more than 25 percent for her this year.
Edwin St. Aubin, president and owner of St. Aubin and Company of Sterling Heights, said the market will probably be off 20-25 percent this year for him.
With so many houses on the market, he said, it’s definitely a buyer’s market for people looking to get a good rate on a great home.
“There is pressure from people who haven’t participated. They’re in a situation where they’re kind of jumping off the fence to lock in an interest rate below 6.5 percent, before it rises above that,” St. Aubin said. “There’s an imbalance of supply and demand that favors the buyers. The inventory is plentiful and the choices are many. The homes that are getting the most offers are the ones that are priced right and are in turn-key condition.”
In advising sellers on how to attract a potential buyer to their home, St. Aubin said he tells them what the market situation is. He said that helps them to set a price that is reasonable, and thus more likely to draw the attention of buyers.
“The people who are buying right now have a degree of certainty about their future. They’re either in jobs that are stable, or they’re working for companies where they’ve just been promoted, or they’re first-time home-buyers that have just started a job,” St. Aubin said. “In terms of market price structures, the homes that are priced between $175,000 and $225,000 are probably the ones that are getting the most activity. The $225,000 to $325,000 [homes] are slower.”
You can reach Brian C. Louwers at blouwers@candgnews.com
By Brian C. LouwersC & G Newspaper, Warren Staff Writer
WARREN —While the housing market continues to soar nationwide, local real estate experts said the sputtering economy in southeast Michigan has translated into a reduced number of new home sales this year.
That said, homes are still being bought and sold in the market. The experts said that’s particularly true for first-time buyers looking to take advantage of a plethora of creative mortgage options and interest rates that, still under 7 percent, are considerably low.
“I started in real estate, and they [rates] were 17-and-a-half percent,” said Judy Palmer, an associate broker with RE/MAX Showcase Homes, in Birmingham. “There’s still so many mortgage programs that make it comfortable for buyers who feel that it’s affordable, and it’s definitely a tax advantage. Most of the people I’ve been dealing with for probably the last year or more have been first-time buyers. Ironically, many of my sellers have been people moving out of state to accept jobs elsewhere.”
Palmer said sale closings are down more than 25 percent for her this year.
Edwin St. Aubin, president and owner of St. Aubin and Company of Sterling Heights, said the market will probably be off 20-25 percent this year for him.
With so many houses on the market, he said, it’s definitely a buyer’s market for people looking to get a good rate on a great home.
“There is pressure from people who haven’t participated. They’re in a situation where they’re kind of jumping off the fence to lock in an interest rate below 6.5 percent, before it rises above that,” St. Aubin said. “There’s an imbalance of supply and demand that favors the buyers. The inventory is plentiful and the choices are many. The homes that are getting the most offers are the ones that are priced right and are in turn-key condition.”
In advising sellers on how to attract a potential buyer to their home, St. Aubin said he tells them what the market situation is. He said that helps them to set a price that is reasonable, and thus more likely to draw the attention of buyers.
“The people who are buying right now have a degree of certainty about their future. They’re either in jobs that are stable, or they’re working for companies where they’ve just been promoted, or they’re first-time home-buyers that have just started a job,” St. Aubin said. “In terms of market price structures, the homes that are priced between $175,000 and $225,000 are probably the ones that are getting the most activity. The $225,000 to $325,000 [homes] are slower.”
You can reach Brian C. Louwers at blouwers@candgnews.com
posted by Ralph Marcus (Mark) Maupin | 3:40 AM
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