Citrus County Housing Market and What the Experts are Saying
Searches for phrases ‘When is the housing market going to crash?’ are up 2,450% over the past month, as reported by MarketWatch. Similarly, Americans are searching in droves for explanations about why the housing market is so hot and why home prices are rising, Google reported. The Citrus County housing market is no exception.
Americans’ concerns are perhaps a natural by-product of today’s extremely competitive market, economists said. For some, today’s real-estate market might feel eerily similar to the market conditions that preceded the Great Recession. Given that the last housing boom triggered a global economic meltdown, these concerns are certainly understandable. But Citrus County housing experts argue that Americans don’t need to get themselves too worked up — yet.
“We’re not going to see a crash in the housing market, but we are expecting some cooling on the really unsustainable growth rates that we saw, particularly in 2020,” said Robert Dietz, chief economist at the National Association of Home Builders. “When home prices are growing faster than incomes, ultimately that is an unsustainable trend.”
The circumstances contributing to today’s booming housing market are very different from what precipitated the last boom and bust cycle. In particular, lenders are being far more careful. Most housing experts project that mortgage rates will only rise somewhat modestly this year. Interest rates have rebounded from the record lows set
at the start of the year, but in recent works, they settled around 3%.
Should rates resume their upward climb, home price growth is likely to slow in response, experts say. And that could give some buyers an opening, as affordability pushes others out of the Citrus County housing market for the time being.
Existing Home Sales Suffer as Tight Supply Push Prices Higher
Closed sales of existing homes fell 3.7% in March to a seasonally adjusted annualized rate of 6.01 million units, according to the National Association of Realtors. According to CNBC, that is the slowest sales pace since August and the second straight month of declines.
Realtors say the monthly numbers are dropping due to limited supply. The demand is there. Homes are selling in an average of just 18 days, which is considered an extremely fast rate.
“If the demand was retreating, then we would see fewer multiple offers, but we know that multiple offers are widely prevalent in today’s market,” said Lawrence Yun, chief economist for the Realtors.
More homes have been coming on the market in the past few weeks, but the market is still incredibly lean, especially on the low end. Higher-end home listings are more plentiful.
“Although homes are far from plentiful, housing supply could be reaching a turning point thanks to a surge in new listings just as the housing market hits the best time of the year to sell a home,” said Danielle Hale, chief economist for realtor.com. “Also, builders are finding a way to build a growing number of new homes despite challenges.”
Builders are, however, still producing well below demand levels, as prices for land, labor and materials rise. Lumber hit several new highs just this month. Some builders are delaying projects so they’re not buying materials at the peak of the market.
Weekly Mortgage Rate Update
The drop in mortgage rates is good news for homeowners who are still looking to take advantage of the very low rate environment. 
Freddie Mac research suggests that lower income and minority homeowners have been less likely to engage in the refinance market. Low and declining mortgage rates provide these homeowners the opportunity to reduce their monthly payment and improve their financial position.
The Freddie Mac weekly survey shows the average rate for a 30-year fixed mortgage is 2.97%, which is 0.07 points lower than last week, and down 0.36 points from this time last year.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR: MOVEMENT STAFF
The Market Update is a weekly commentary compiled by a group of Movement Mortgage capital markets analysts with decades of combined expertise in the financial field. Movement’s staff helps take complicated economic topics and turn them into a useful, easy to understand analysis to help you make the best decisions for your financial future.
For more useful tips and mortgage information, contact Pam Cleary at Movement Mortgage today by visiting her website. You can also visit her at 7773 S. Suncoast Blvd., in Homosassa, Florida. Call her directly at (352) 634-0716.
Courtesy of Pam Cleary, Branch Manager, Movement Mortgage.
Citrus County Housing Market- Current April Report
As April is nearing to an end, the Citrus County housing market continues to sizzle. Currently, there are a total of 152 residential homes on the market, with an average price of $280,000. Additionally, homes on the market are averaging 9 days. Contact your local experts at Next Generation Realty to find your dream home before it’s gone!
Your Citrus County Housing Market Specialists
With homebuyer competition heating up, our agents can help you navigate Citrus County’s HOT real estate market. Contact Next Generation Realty in Sugarmill Woods or Crystal River, Florida. Their real estate experts will help you find the perfect home in Citrus County. Speak with a professional today: Sugarmill Woods (352) 382-2700 or Crystal River (352) 794-6100.
