Do you intend to build a house in 2019? The real estate industry is constantly changing each year, and home buyers should be prepared for this upcoming year. Here is some information we’ve compiled to get you started!

One of the most critical things you can do, particularly if you’re a first-time buyer, is to get to know the market where you intend to buy. Reviewing monthly reports and speaking with a local real estate agent can assist you in becoming familiar with what’s occurring before you buy.

Property Trends to Anticipate in 2019

This past August, Freddie Mac put out a real estate market outlook that was…complicated. The economy and employment are healthy, which is good for real estate. However, there are indications that things are calming down in some areas. There should be expansion in 2019, but it will be more conservative than the years before.

Markets Will Be More Even and Consumer Beneficial

For many years now, numerous cities have been in a seller’s market. There has been limited construction, looser lending, and buyers wanted to benefit from low interest rates. Supply and demand tipped in favor of sellers. However, many real estate experts believe that in 2019 things will begin to even out a bit and may lean towards being a buyer’s market in some areas.

New Construction Starts Will Help With Supply

By mid-2018 new home sales were up 7.4%. That’s in part due to the increase in new home starts. At the end of June this year, new housing starts were up 7.8% year-over-year. Analysts predict that new home starts will increase by 8% in 2019 as well. Buyers considering a new home should have more choices than last year.

Interest Rates Will Probably Be Slightly Raised

You may have learned the Federal Reserve is raising interest rates. The U.S. weekly average mortgage rate increased from 3.99 percent in the first week of January to as high as 4.66 percent in May. Things have steadied, but prices are expected to creep up to 5.1% by the end of 2019. This trend will urge many people to purchase a home in 2019 while rates are still low. The NerdWallet 2018 Home Buyer Report found that 82% of millennials plan to make home buying a priority partially because of the rise in interest rates.

Home Values Will Appreciate Slowly

Although things seem a bit more promising for buyers for the next few years, home prices are still appreciating, and this is inspiring people to buy a home. The logic is it’s better to buy sooner rather than later to keep the cost of homeownership as low as possible.

The Home Buying Institute stated that prices rose by 8.1% from July 2017 to July 2018, and early predictions are that appreciation will slow to 6.5% from July 2018 to July 2019 nationwide.

Faster Closing Times

Data from Ellie Mae shows that from February 2017 to February 2018 the time to close has gotten four days shorter. The amount of time it takes to close is essential when you’re planning a move or have to sell another home before you can buy a new house.

Building a new home in 2019 is more comfortable with the right builder. Make the first move – contact us today for your free consultation.