Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices Northwest Real Estate Federal Way & Puyallup

Everyone wants a place to call home; a place that gives them a sense of security. We are currently seeing major interest from females who want to achieve this dream, and the numbers are proving it! In 2018, for the second year in a row, single female buyers accounted for  18%  of all buyers . In 2017,  60%  of millennial women listed as the primary borrowers on mortgages were single. According to the  2018 Home Buyer and Seller Generational Trends Report  by the  National Association of Realtors , one in five homebuyers in the U.S. were single females (most of them part of the baby boomer generation) as you can see in the graph below: This does not come as a surprise since 50.8% of the U.S. population is female and 15.6% of them are 65 years and over, according to the  Census Bureau . What are the reasons for this demographic’s booming interest in homeownership? Bankrate  published an  article  with what they believe t...

Economists reported  This Week in Real Estate  that "sellers will keep their foothold for another couple of years at least, though with weakened negotiating power thanks to basic economic fundamentals like a growing job market rather than one that has been artificially bolstered." Below are a few highlights from the second week of November that influence our business : * Single-Family Permits: Declines in the Midwest and Northeast.   Over the first nine months of 2018, the total number of single-family permits issued  year-to-date (YTD) nationwide reached 664,665. On a year-over-year basis, this is a 5.7% increase over the September 2017 level of 628,858. The preliminary results from the New Residential Construction Survey  are similar, year-to-date single-family permits over the first nine months of 2018 was, 663,800 which is 5.5% ahead of its level over the same period of 2017, 628,900.  Year-to-date, single-family...

Every year at this time there are many homeowners who decide to wait until after the holidays to list their homes for the first time, while others who already have their homes on the market decide to take them off until after the holidays. Here are seven great reasons not to wait: Relocation buyers are out there. Many companies are still hiring throughout the holidays and need their new employees in their new positions as soon as possible. Purchasers who are looking for homes during the holidays are serious buyers and are ready to buy  now . You can restrict the showings on your home to the times you want it shown. You will remain in control. Homes show better when decorated for the holidays. There is minimal competition for you as a seller right now. Inventory of homes for sale traditionally slows in the late fall, early winter. Let’s take a look at listing inventory as compared to the same time last year: The desire to own a home doesn’t stop when the holidays co...

Some Highlights: Historically, the choice between renting or buying a home has been a tough decision. Looking at the  percentage of income  needed to rent a median-priced home today (28.4%) vs. the percentage needed to buy a median-priced home (17.5%), the choice becomes obvious. Every market is different. Before you renew your lease again, find out if you can put your housing costs to work by buying this year! NOVEMBER 16, 2018 / BY  THE KCM CREW

Everyone knows that housing affordability has been negatively impacted by rising prices and increasing mortgage rates, but there is another piece to the affordability equation – wages. How much a family earns obviously impacts how easy or difficult it is for them to afford to own a home. Because of an improving economy, wages are finally beginning to increase – and that dramatically affects home affordability. According to the  National Association of Realtors ’ (NAR)  September 2018 Housing Affordability Index ,  wages have increased in every region of the country: After applying current salaries, home prices, and mortgage rates to their Home Affordability Index equation, the index, though still lower than this time last year (160.1 to 146.7), increased over the last month (141.2 to 146.7).  For the complete methodology used by  NAR,  click  here . The percentage of income needed to own a home has also decreased each of the last three mon...

According to a recent  report  by  ATTOM Data Solutions , home sellers who sold their homes in the third quarter of 2018 benefited from rising home prices and netted an average of $61,232. This is the highest average price gain since the second quarter of 2007 and represents a 32% return on the original purchase prices. After the Great Recession, many homeowners were left in negative equity situations but home price appreciation in the recovery period since then has given homeowners something to smile about. The results from ATTOM fall right in line with data from the latest edition of the  National Association of Realtors’  (NAR)   Profile of Home Buyers and Sellers . Below is a chart that was created using NAR’s data to show the percentage of equity that homeowners earned at the time of sale based on when they purchased their homes. Even though those who purchased at the peak of the market netted less than those who bought before and after th...

Over the past few years, two trends have emerged in the housing market: Home renovations have shot up Inventory of homes available for sale on the market has dropped A ‘normal’ housing market is defined by having a 6-month supply of homes for sale. According to the latest  Existing Home Sales Report  from the  National Association of Realtors , we are currently at a 4.4-month supply. This low inventory environment has many current homeowners worried that they would be unable to find a home to buy if they were to list and sell their current houses, which is causing many homeowners to instead renovate their homes in an attempt to fit their needs. According to  Home Advisor ,  homeowners spent  an average of $6,649 on home improvements over the last 12 months. If that number seems high, it also includes homeowners who recently bought fixer-uppers. A new  study  from  Zillow  asked the question, “Given a choice between spen...