July 12th - It’s a Seller’s Market for Now, But Things Could “Flip”

We Are In A Seller’s Market For Now, But That Could Change

Steve starts the show by asking Terry to shed light on a prediction he saw that said we’re in a seller’s market in housing right now and that the next buyer’s market is two to three years away.  Terry attributes that prediction to an economist at the real estate website Zillow and explains it as an inference that rising interest rates over the next few years could restrict the number of buyers and force home prices down.  She also sees this as part of the cyclical nature of the housing market, where the trend gradually turns from a seller’s market to a buyer’s market, with a tipping point that begins when home price appreciation slows and favors home buyers, not sellers.

This flip could also occur due to a supply-demand imbalance as more homes get on the market due to overbuilding or from a price reduction trend started by sellers tired of waiting to sell their homes and buyers holding off on purchases in anticipation of lower prices.

Over the past few years, home price growth had outpaced tepid income growth and prompted mortgage lending giant, Fannie Mae, to raise its debt-to-income ceiling from 45% to 50% allowing people with good credit to qualify for mortgages by taking on that little bit of extra debt.