Triangle Area Real Estate News & Information

Finally - Economist are becoming believers! With the recent reports from the Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA), it is now crystal clear that home building is a leading source of economic growth for 2012. In fact, all of the reports from the Homebuilder Association, the National Association of REALTORS, The Federal Housing and Finance Agency support the fact that the National Economy is improving, and as it improves, the National housing market is recovering too!

What Changed In The North Carolina Real Estate Market

As the overall economy slowed, housing generated a large share of the expansion. Home building and remodeling (residential) added 0.33 percentage points to the final tally of GDP growth, or 17% of the total. Those are numbers that can't be ignored.

Of the three primary elements of the housing sector (new home construction, remodeling and existing home sales), new home sales continue to experience the largest gains, increasing in September 5.7% to an annual rate of 389,000, the highest level since the home buyer tax credit expired in early 2010.

The three-month moving average of new home sales has increased steadily for more than a year as more housing markets begin to see rising home prices and improving consumer sentiment.The number of completed homes for sale and ready for immediate move-in remains at a record low of 38,000 as builders remain cautious about building ahead of the market and as credit access remains tight.

This information from the National Association of Homebuilders, is important to note, because the Homebuilder numbers include Apartment complexes. This is why New Home starts are up - but Inventory is down.

Existing homes sales, as reported by the National Association of Realtors (NAR), are up 11% from the same period a year ago. NAR reported that September total existing home sales were at a seasonally adjusted rate of 4.75 million units combined for single-family homes, townhouses, condominiums and co-ops.

NAR reported 24% of September sales were distressed, defined as foreclosures and short sales sold at deep discounts. This level was down from 30% a year ago.

First Time Homebuyers Are Making An Impact

First-time home buyers accounted for 32% of sales, according to NAR. Year over year, the Pending Home Sales Inventory has increased for 17 straight months - again good news for the Economy and good news for housing. Further, there was more good news for housing prices. According to reports from the Federal Housing Finance Agency house prices increased nationally, so far in 2012, to 4.6% - after being essentially flat through 2011.

With prices rising and new home construction increasing, housing is finally providing the boost to economic growth that the sector typically provided at the end of a recession. This did not occur at the end of the Great Recession due to historic price declines, excess inventories and pent-up housing demand associated with a weak labor market.

Why go through all of these numbers? To remind us that Real Estate Investing is LOCAL. We tell folks that, "It's not Sunny and 72 degrees across the Country - anymore than the cost of Real Estate, and the Trends for homes in Durham will be the same as Detroit." These national reports are great - because it means that the National Economy is improving - but the reality is that the LOCAL Real Estate Market, homes for sale in Durham and Chapel Hill, have seen improvement ahead of the National Reports.

If you are considering the sale of a home, or you want to buy a house in Durham, or you are looking for a great neighborhood in Chapel Hill - now is a great time! Call the Larry Tollen Team or send us a message online today!