I don’t know anyone who doesn’t get up in the morning and hope for a whole day of nothing but good news. So, I put on my Mr. Roger’s “won’t-you-be-my-neighbor” sweater and squirted a little Windex on my rose-colored glasses to bring you some rays of real estate sunshine. 

GOOD NEWS: Home prices continue to escalate but at a slower pace. Believe it or not, that IS good news…not just for buyers…but for sellers alike. This “leveling out” will return some previously discouraged buyers to the market and also act as an insurance policy of sorts against the dreaded “bubble.” But remember, it takes more than just elevated home prices to produce a bubble. When there’s an inventory shortage, like now, and lenders aren’t making riskier loans, a bubble is virtually impossible. This price escalation slowdown is merely a blip on the radar screen anyway. From 1^st Qtr. ’17 to 1^st Qtr. ‘18, average sale prices in Indian Rocks Beach increased 24%. The same 1^st Qtr. comparison from last year (’18) to this year shows prices up a shade over 16%.   

GOOD NEWS: Buyers are getting “better” houses. According to The Harris Poll, 73% of homeowners plan to make household improvements this year. Average expenditure: $9,000. And, the goal of 21% of those investing in upgrades is increasing value and/or putting their homes on the market. 

GOOD NEWS: Sale prices don’t react to non-catastrophic hurricanes, even during Hurricane Season. A named storm is sort of like a bad haircut; in a few weeks everyone forgets about it. 

GOOD NEWS: More Americans have a positive outlook on life. They spend the most on housing but still manage to shell out an average of $165 per day on groceries, gas, entertainment, etc. Fewer are living in poverty and life is good for the majority of us. 

GOOD NEWS: Interest rates have not risen to predicted levels. For a brief moment late last year, they inched up near 5% but came back down to what are still very attractive rates. When you add a brisk job market and rising wages (household income up about 2% last year) to the mix, the anticipated market contraction simply fizzled out. 

GOOD NEWS: Florida’s economy continues to gangbust. By 2047, the Sunshine State will add another 8 million residents and the state’s economy will quadruple. It doesn’t hurt that Florida is #4 among U.S. high-earners and affluent families ($200,000-$500,000). Overgrowth in Miami/South Florida will likely steer more folks to our area. 

The Good News Network, an online clearinghouse for positive news stories, contends there is plenty of good news; we just don’t hear about it. Is it just me or does too much good news in real estate make you nervous? Some of us are still in therapy from the last time we felt this way. Relax! It’s all good. 

Source: My Florida Regional MLS