We are well into February and starting to see a seasonal housing drop. We’re experiencing the lowest levels in three months, shedding light on the limit of gains possible within residential real estate in early 2016. Housing saw a drop of 3.8% (1.1 million), down from 1.14 million the month prior.
Like most things in real estate, there are many factors that explain why we’re seeing slowed growth this soon into the new year. While all four regions within the U.S. experienced a decline, the big storms on the East Coast likely worsened the effects towards the end of the month. While the numbers don’t show a lot of positivity in the current state, it’s expected that a growing job market will buoy the demand for housing this year, helping offset our stringent credit standards.
Gus Faucher, an economist at PNC Financial Services Group in Pittsburgh, whose forecast tied for the closest in the Bloomberg survey, said, “We had a mild November and December, and there’s just a little bit of payback in January. I do expect to see growth in housing starts over the course of the year.” Great rates will likely continue to push the buyers who are able to meet credit standards, thus pushing along the housing numbers hindered by weather and ordinary seasonal analytics.
Learning your options today is important for building your future tomorrow. I would be happy to speak with you about how the housing drop affects you. Please reach out to me at (619) 857-7191 so that we can discuss your options together!
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