5 Trends In Real Estate For 2016

Posted By Jason Gelios      3 min. read

1. ‘Normal’ is coming.
Expect a healthy growth in home sales and prices – at a slower pace than in 2015. “This slowdown is not an indication of a problem—it’s just a return to normalcy,” writes Jonathan Smoke, realtor.com®’s chief economist. “We’ve lived through 15 years of truly abnormal trends, and after working off the devastating effects of the housing bust, we’re finally seeing signs of more normal conditions.” New construction and distressed sales are expected to return to more historical levels, and home prices are expected to follow at “more normal rates consistent with a more balanced market.”

2. Technology Aids The Home Buyer.
Young adults are utilizing technology in a big way to help get them started in the real estate transaction. From pulling up neighborhood information to browsing thru home listings, young adults are grasping technology to better understand the market. While technology is not replacing the real life agent, it does save time by educating the home buyer more thoroughly before meeting with the real estate agent for the first time.
 
3. New Home Builders Will Make More Affordable Homes.
We are seeing a decrease in new home sales and home builders slowly shifting to offering more affordable homes. In Macomb County, the mini-mansion trend is slowing as well. As more younger home buyers hit the market, they are looking for affordable homes that do not break the bank. You can expect to see more of these starter homes pop up.

4. Mortgage Rates Will Increase; Slowly.
We will see an increase in mortgage rates in 2016. Rates have been at historical lows but that will not continue as rates increase with the Fed’s actions. While the rate increases may be manageable for most borrowers, they will have to take into account that when rates rise so does debt vs. income and monthly payments. This will more than likely effect higher priced markets.

5. Expect Rents To Increase.
What we are seeing in Macomb County and surrounding areas is an increase in rent amounts. Some areas have even increased more than 30%. While the housing market is improving, there are a lot of people still recovering from the recession while their credit heals.