Majority Now Optimistic About Housing Industry
By McCoy Freeman Group // May 9, 2013
REAL ESTATE REPORT
BREVARD COUNTY, FLORIDA – According to Fannie Mae’s April 2013 National Housing Survey, more than half of Americans now expect the country’s home prices to climb within the next year representing a growing optimism toward the health of the housing industry.
Currently 2,774 properties are under contract to close in Brevard according to Brevard MLS. Breaking down the properties under contract are: 425 Bank-Owned properties, 1,109 Short Sales, 47 HUD Homes, 7 Relocation Company Owned and 1,186 are considered a Standard Listing.
Last April only 32 percent of Americans had that optimistic outlook. The share of respondents who think it’s a good time to sell remains low, but it increased 4 percentage points in April to 30 percent; one year earlier, it was 15 percent.
“Crossing the 50 percent threshold marks a significant milestone as most Americans believe a housing recovery is truly occurring throughout the country,” says Doug Duncan, senior vice president and chief economist at Fannie Mae.
BREVARD COUNTY CLOSINGS UP 30 PERCENT SINCE 2010
In addition, the “share of Americans who think it’s a good time to sell has doubled during the last year. Many homeowners who have been underwater are gradually returning to positive equity, and selling is now becoming an available and attractive option again.”
Over the years this has become more apparent in Brevard County. So far this year 3,570 single-family homes, condos and town homes have sold compared to 2,712 during the same time period in 2010.
SURVEY HIGHLIGHTS
• The average 12-month home price change expectation held steady at 2.7 percent.
• The share of people who believe home prices will go down remained at the survey low of 10 percent for the fourth month in a row.
• The share of respondents who say mortgage rates will go up fell 3 percentage points to 43 percent, while those who say rates will go down increased slightly to 7 percent.
• The average 12-month rental price change expectation held steady at 4.1 percent.
• 48 percent of those surveyed say home rental prices will go up in the next year, a 2-percentage point decrease from last month’s survey high.
• The share of respondents who said they would buy if they were going to move increased slightly to 65 percent.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Bobby Freeman, a life-time resident of Brevard County, has been a top Realtor in the area for two decades. In his first year as an agent, Freeman received a Rising Star award from his Brokers. Since then he has achieved numerous sales awards and has recently been presented with the prestigious RE/MAX Hall of Fame Award.
Freeman, Jennifer McCoy and Nikki McCoy Freeman are family partners for RE/MAX Elite’s McCoy-Freeman Group. Together they have more than 30 years of extensive experience in all aspects of the real estate industry and have sold over $180 million. Among McCoy-Freeman Group’s achievement are RE/MAX Hall of Fame, RE/MAX 100% Club, Certified Distressed Property Experts (CDPE), Accredited Buyer’s Representative (ABR) and voted Best Realtor in Brevard County. The group has been featured in many news publications including CNN Money Magazine, CNNMoney.com, WFTV 9 ABC News, Coastal Condo Living, & Hot Retirement Towns Magazine and SpaceCoastDaily.com.
For more information log on to BrevardRealtyConnection.
