Post date: March 3, 2017
The Massachusetts real estate market has been out of the recession and climbing since end of 2012. Buyers have been waiting for the tight market to relax so they can get into the market and buy. They are wondering if the current seller’s market is finally over.
According to national data, 2017 Boston housing prices should be like 2016. There are plenty of first time home buyers, but a tight inventory to choose from. This year will have more first time buyers, but they face the prospect of not finding a home as the market inventory is low. There’s a strong job market and lower interest rates, so this is attracting more first time buyers into the real estate market. The current market is below a six-month supply of available homes and this doesn’t appear to be changing anytime soon. New buyers face a lot of competition in the market which may drive up prices for homes. The seller’s market will continue nationwide, but some areas are showing signs of a shift.
Where the market is changing?
In some areas, such as Kansas City, it’s more of a buyer’s market as buyers aren’t willing to pay for the high process off homes according to Keller Williams Realty Key Partners in the metro Kansas City, Missouri area. Because of this refusal to buy a high-priced home, the prices are coming down to meet buyers demands. Many sellers are putting their home on the market to test prices and aren’t pricing their properties fairly for the market. There’s now a glut of inventory in the area. In areas where there’s lower population growth, the buyers have the upper hand, while in areas like Boston, which is a metro area, the sellers have the upper hand due to lower volume of homes available on the market.
Where are seller’s markets continuing?
Areas such as Boston where the population is increasing by 4% between 2010-2014, the housing isn’t able to meet this growing demand. In Boston, the Multiple Listing Service reported that the active listings in October 2016 dropped 13% when compared to October 2015. More people are moving to this area, but there are fewer homes to choose from and prices remain high because of this. The average person can’t afford a home because there’s not enough development to ease home prices.
Boston is employing many in the biotech filed with thousands start-up and developed companies, and a lot of young people with those skills are looking for homes in the area.
How can people still buy?
With some financing, you may be able to get a home on the current market. Many are hunting for homes in the spring and summer, which are the popular months to buy a home. It’s a good idea to wait it out and buy in the fall or winter when there’s less demand for homes.
Future trends
According to realtor.com, out of the 100 largest metro areas in the country, Boston clocked in as the third-hottest real estate market for 2017. The property search site examined housing markets based on levels of price and sales gains—Boston was beat out by the likes of Los Angeles, Calif., at number two, and Phoenix, Ariz., at number one. Boston’s real estate market is still going to be fast-paced and high-priced compared to the rest of the country.
Realtor.com anticipates strong local economies and population growth will continue to fuel these top U.S. markets. Boston is expected to see a 6.1 percent increase in price and a 6.3 percent increase in sales, outpacing the predicted national growths of 3.9 percent in price and 1.9 percent in sales. The report says the top 10 housing markets have a few common themes: low unemployment, large populations of millennials and baby boomers, and relatively affordable rent prices.