Hi neighbor, Today I will be sharing with you our perspective on the local real estate market here in Houston, Texas, specifically a market update for the neighborhood of Champion Forest. Whether you are looking to buy, sell, or just keep an eye on the market, we look forward to being your resource.
What is happening in the real estate market in Champion Forest?
We currently have 10 homes pending, with 5 homes sold in the last two weeks, averaging a sale price of $151 a square foot. Five homes sold over asking price, with one home selling 7% above the listing price.
Compared to the two weeks prior: Homes sold are slightly down from 7. If we look at how fast the move in ready homes are going, the supply in this area has not surpassed the demand, making it still a great time to sell. We cannot pinpoint another time in history where you were almost guaranteed to get over your homes current market value.
Buyers agents around Houston are seeing a slow in the real estate market, but it isn’t affecting the neighborhoods with such high demand, like Champion Forest, so that is good news for anyone that waited until summer to sell. I know the interest rates rising has been one deterrent from some buyers purchasing right now, but that isn’t your ideal buyer anyways! And the educated buyer still knows, they need to buy ASAP.
P.S. The median days on market is 6 days, with most homes selling during the first 4-5 days (aka a really good coming soon campaign like we do at Jo & Co. boosts that and your over asking price ratio!)
Check out the graphic below for a larger overview of the real estate market for the last two weeks in Champion Forest.
What is happening in the real estate market nationally?
Mortgage rates saw a good deal of volatility last week, trending sharply upwards toward the beginning of the week and trending sharply downwards towards the end. Mortgage application submissions increased last week, while retail sales slipped in May. The National Association Of Home Builders (NAHB) released their housing market sentiment index for June, which showed a decline in builder confidence. The Federal Reserve raised the benchmark interest rate once again. Continuing jobless claims increased slightly while initial jobless claims decreased. Housing starts and building permits slowed in May.
| MORTGAGE RATES CURRENTLY TRENDING | THIS WEEK'S POTENTIAL VOLATILITY |
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Notable News
- Logan Mohtashami discusses falling home prices. Listen Now >>
- Home prices will likely soften soon. Watch Now >>
- Homeowners see 12-month equity gain of $64,000. Read Now >>
Market Recap
- Mortgage application submissions increased a composite 6.6% during the week ending 6/10. The Refinance Index increased 4% and the seasonally adjusted Purchase Index increased 8%.
- Retail sales slipped a light 0.3% in May as inflation posed a challenge for many consumers. Retail sales excluding gas and autos increased 0.1%. Year-over-year, total retail sales were up 8.1%.
- The NAHB housing market sentiment index fell two points in June, down to a level of 67, as rising mortgage rates and ongoing supply chain delays continued to impact the construction sector.
- Following the two-day Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) June meeting, the FOMC voted to raise the benchmark interest rate by 75 basis points, or 0.75%. This brings the Federal Funds Rate to a range of 1.5% to 1.75%. Though the 75-basis-point hike is higher than Fed Chair Jerome Powell previously suggested, it is hopeful to make more of an impact on the current pace of inflation.
- Continuing jobless claims increased slightly to a level of 1.31 million during the week ending 6/4. Initial jobless claims decreased to a level of 229,000 during the week ending 6/11.
- In May, housing starts fell 14.4% month-over-month to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.55 million. Building permits fell 7% month-over-month to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.70 million but were still 0.2% above their May 2021 levels.
Review of Last Week
RATES UP, STOCKS DOWN… Wednesday, the Fed voted for a three-quarter percent rate hike, its biggest since 1994, and investors sent the three major stock indexes solidly south for the third straight week.
The Fed's more aggressive policy was a stronger attack on inflation, a good thing, but Wall Street worried that more big rate hikes, which Fed chair Powell hinted at, could send the slowing economy into recession.
The Producer Price Index reported wholesale price inflation up 10.8% annually. Retail Sales, down in May, are up 8.1% annually but lag CPI inflation at 8.6%. Good news came with industrial activity up for the fifth month in a row.
The week ended with the Dow down 4.8%, to 29,889; the S&P 500 down 5.8%, to 3,675; and the Nasdaq down 4.8%, to 10,798.
Bond prices fell for another week, the 30-year UMBS 4.5% down 0.22, to $99.09. The national average 30-year fixed mortgage rate rose more than half a percentage point in Freddie Mac's Primary Mortgage Market Survey. Remember, mortgage rates can be extremely volatile, so check with your mortgage professional for up-to-the-minute information.
DID YOU KNOW… Housing costs are a key part of the Consumer Price Index (CPI) measure of inflation. Rents have risen strongly, but still have a long way to go to catch up to home prices, which have gained more than 30% since the start of the pandemic.
Market Forecast
NEW HOME SALES UP, EXISTING HOME SALES, CONSUMER SENTIMENT DOWN… May should see New Home Sales edge up, but Existing Home Sales are expected to continue their downward path, driven by low inventory. Consumers remain unhappy, as the final June read of University of Michigan Consumer Sentiment is forecast to sink to a historically low level.
All U.S. financial markets are closed today in observance of the Juneteenth federal holiday.
Summary
Housing Starts fell 14.4% in May, to a 1.549 million annual rate. The monthly decline was due to both single-family and multi-unit starts, and for the year, single-families are down 5.3%, multi-units down 3.3%.
Builders are cautious about future demand thanks to rising mortgage rates–plus, projects in their pipelines are now at the highest level since 1970 and construction has slowed from a lack of workers and supply-chain issues.
Silver lining department: Freddie Mac notes, “Higher mortgage rates will lead to moderation from the blistering pace of housing activity…coming out of the pandemic, ultimately resulting in a more balanced housing market.”
Can we sell yours?
So if you are in need of a listing agent, we would love the opportunity to see your home and meet you of course. My husband, Edward, and I, look forward to being the brokerage and team for you! You can reach out to us via email: [email protected] & [email protected] or telephone: 832-493-6685.
Read more:
If you are curious ‘How to get more money for your home when listing it for sale', check out this blog post.
I hope you have found this blog post super helpful. If there is anything else we can do for you, including helping you sell (or buy) a home, I would be honored to assist. I hope you have a great day/evening. Cheers, E + J.
We are so happy you found our little corner of the interwebs. We look forward to y'all reaching out to us. We love to answer questions and welcome them. Recently we created some local maps, and you can download those by clicking the image/link above. Below, you will find an index of some very helpful information to assist you in learning more about the Houston suburbs. If you are relocating to our neck of the woods, we hope you reach out to us, because we would love to help you by being your local realtor and friend. Thoughtfully written for you. Hugs, Jo.
We are Waiting for You
If you are looking to relocate to the Houston Area, we would love to meet you, and hear your story. Below you will find all of my contact information, as well as some homes for sale in the area. We truly look forward to hearing from you! P.S. Don't forget to check out our YouTube Channel!
If you are overwhelmed..
Now if you are feeling overwhelmed on where you should plant your roots, I would love to talk to you. You can schedule a call with me by click this link: http://byjoandco.com/call or just send us an email: [email protected]. There are some amazing communities all over the Houston suburbs. In this post, https://search.byjoandco.com/blog/best-neighborhoods-in-houston/, I deep dive into all the different suburbs/neighborhoods that you might want to consider, and why. There are many resources here, so please reach out if you are curious what to look at next! Thank you for trusting us.
What next?!
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