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Whether you’re a homeowner with a home to sell or a buyer hoping to find a home to buy, spring is a good time to do it. It’s the housing market’s busiest season and it’s just getting underway. Mark Fleming, chief economist at First American Data & Analytics, says a large share of the year’s home sales will happen over the next few months. “The spring season is typically the busiest time of the year for the housing market,” Fleming says. “According to data from First American Data & Analytics, historically approximately 36 percent of existing-home sales for the year occur from March through June.” But why is spring the season when Americans traditionally look to make a move? Well, Fleming says the reasons range from better weather to the approaching end of the school year. Whatever the reason, though, it’s the time of year buyers get active and sellers aim to make a deal. (source)

Everybody wants their home to look great when they put it up for sale. After all, the better it looks, the more likely it’ll sell quickly and for the right price. But how far do homeowners need to go when prepping their home for buyers? Well, according to a new survey from the National Association of Realtors, they may want to consider bringing in a professional. The NAR’s Profile of Home Staging found that nearly half of seller’s agents said having a home professionally staged helped it sell quicker. Among all agents, 20 percent said staging increased the price homes sold for, raising them up to 5 percent higher than similar homes in the area that weren’t staged. Jessica Lautz, NAR’s deputy chief economist and vice president of research, says putting in the extra effort can make a difference in today’s market. “As days on market has lengthened for home sellers, it is not a surprise to see the return of home staging as a tool to attract potential buyers,†Lautz said. “Buyers want to easily envision themselves within a new home and home staging is a way to showcase the property in its best light.†(source)

According to the Mortgage Bankers Association’s Weekly Applications Survey, demand for mortgage loan applications slowed last week from one week earlier. The decline follows four straight weeks of increasing demand from buyers. Mike Fratantoni, MBA’s senior vice president and chief economist, says this time of year typically sees more activity. “Spring has arrived, but the housing market is missing the customary burst in listings and purchase activity that typically mark the season,†Fratantoni said. “After four weeks of increasing purchase activity, volume declined a bit this week even with another small drop in mortgage rates.†Average rates were down, though only for 5/1 ARMs and 30-year fixed-rate loans with conforming balances. Jumbo loans and 15-year fixed-rate loans both saw increases, while loans backed by the Federal Housing Administration were unchanged from one week earlier. The MBA’s weekly survey has been conducted since 1990 and covers 75 percent of all retail residential mortgage applications. (source)

There are a lot of numbers to remember when calculating how much it’ll cost to buy a home. There’s the price of the house, your mortgage rate, the amount of your down payment, property tax, closing costs, and insurance. They’re all important, but perhaps the most important number to remember is your prospective monthly mortgage payment. After all, that’s the one you’ll be seeing every month – long after you’ve paid the upfront costs of buying a home. The Mortgage Bankers Association knows this, which is why they keep a monthly measure of median mortgage payments. Their Purchase Applications Payment Index tracks mortgage payments based on the amount applied for by home buyers applying for loans. According to the most recent report, mortgage payments are up. In fact, they hit $2,061 per month in February. Edward Seiler, MBA’s associate vice president and executive director of the Research Institute for Housing America, says mortgage rates contributed to the increase. “Higher mortgage rates and home prices led to continued erosion in home buyer affordability in February,†Seiler said. “Given ongoing economic uncertainty and the likelihood of a recession, MBA expects mortgage rates to decline as this year progresses, which will help affordability.†(source)

There are several different monthly reports that track home sales. There’s a report that covers sales of previously owned homes and one that covers new home sales. The National Association of Realtors also tracks pending sales – homes that have a signed contract to buy, but have yet to close. But why track pending sales? Well, they’re a good early indicator of upcoming final sales. In other words, if contract signings are rising, next month’s sales numbers will most likely rise too. That’s why the NAR’s most recent numbers, showing pending sales up for the third straight month, are an encouraging sign that the housing market may have turned a corner. Lawrence Yun, NAR’s chief economist, thinks so. “After nearly a year, the housing sector’s contraction is coming to an end,” Yun said. “Existing-home sales, pending contracts, and new-home construction pending contracts have turned the corner and climbed for the past three months.” Those are all good signs that activity is ramping up as the spring season gets underway. They may also be signs that the market has finally started to stabilize. (source)

Early spring is traditionally when the housing market picks up and home buyers start shopping for a house to buy. So far, this year looks no different. According to the National Association of Realtors’ consumer website, active listings and time on market both shrank in March, which is a sign that buyers are starting to get busy. But while the spring market is showing signs of activity, how it ultimately proceeds will largely depend on mortgage rates. Danielle Hale, the website’s chief economist, says buyers are paying attention to their fluctuations. “Signs show that buyers are active in the spring housing market, even if they aren’t as numerous as they were during the pandemic,†Hale said. “Amid fewer new choices on the market and still rising home prices, home shoppers have shown that they are very rate sensitive, only jumping back in the market when rates dip, and so what happens with rates this spring will likely play a strong role in determining whether the housing market bumps along or picks up speed this year.†(source)

Calculating how much house you can afford involves a few factors. You have to take into account how much you make, the price of the house, your mortgage rate, insurance, and property tax. You also have to factor in the rest of your household budget. It’s an equation every home buyer has to do for themselves. But, if you’re a prospective buyer just wondering generally how affordable buying a house is these days, ATTOM Data Solutions has some numbers. According to their first-quarter 2023 U.S. Home Affordability Report, buying conditions have improved slightly from the end of last year. In fact, the percentage of average wages required to cover homeownership expenses on a typical home fell 1 percent from the fourth quarter of 2022. In the first quarter, homeownership required 30 percent of average wages, down from 31 percent the quarter before. Rob Barber, ATTOM’s chief executive, says things have become slightly more favorable for buyers. “Things certainly haven’t swung way back into friendly territory,†Barber said. “Price drops and wage gains haven’t yet translated into equal improvements in affordability … but the scenario is becoming more favorable for buyers.†(source)

According to the Mortgage Bankers Association’s Weekly Applications Survey, average mortgage rates for 30-year fixed-rate loans with both conforming and jumbo balances fell last week from the week before. It was the third consecutive weekly decline. Rates were also down for 15-year fixed-rate loans, though FHA loans and 5/1 ARMs both saw slight increases. Joel Kan, MBA’s vice president and deputy chief economist, says falling rates helped boost home buyer demand. “Application activity increased as mortgage rates declined for the third straight week. The 30-year fixed rate declined … to the lowest level in over a month,†Kan said. “While the 30-year fixed rate remained 1.65 percentage points higher than a year ago, home buyers responded, leading to a fourth straight increase in purchase applications. Home-price growth has slowed markedly in many parts of the county, which has helped improve buyers’ purchasing power.†Last week, overall demand for mortgage applications was 2.9 percent higher than the week before. The MBA’s weekly survey has been conducted since 1990 and covers 75 percent of all retail residential mortgage applications. (source)

When it comes to affordability, prospective home buyers have their eye on two things: mortgage rates and home prices. Rates, of course, have been up and down lately, after rising from historic lows early last year. Home prices, on the other hand, have been fairly steady. In fact, according to the latest S&P Case-Shiller Home Price Indices, they’ve been gradually slowing since their peak last June. Craig J. Lazzara, managing director at S&P, says the National Composite Index is down around 5 percent since then. “2023 began as 2022 had ended, with U.S. home prices falling for the seventh consecutive month,†Lazzara said. “The National Composite declined by 0.5 percent in January, and now stands 5.1 percent below its peak in June 2022.†But while prices are down from their peak, they’re still higher than last year. At the beginning of the year, they were 3.8 percent higher than one year earlier, with some cities still reporting double-digit, year-over-year increases. (source)

Each month, Fannie Mae’s Economic and Strategic Research Group releases a forecast covering what they think is ahead for the housing market and economy. According to their March outlook, the group says economic data has started the year off stronger than expected and – while a lot of uncertainty still exists – the housing market is poised to help moderate any potential downturn should one occur in the second half of the year. “While housing writ large has responded to the Fed’s monetary tightening in a relatively predictable fashion, the rapid uptick in home sales in response to modest rate declines earlier this year corroborates our long-standing expectation that the housing sector will help moderate any future recession due to the significant pent-up demand,†Doug Duncan, Fannie Mae’s senior vice president and chief economist, said. In other words, the group believes the Fed will likely slow interest rate increases in the case of a recession. If that happens, lower rates would then help spur buyer demand, which remains significant and ready to move when affordability conditions improve. (source)