The Bluebid Buzz is a regular summary of housing market news and data driving our decision-making at Bluebid Homes.
Disclaimer: Views expressed here are my own and not the views of my coworkers or anyone else. I am not a financial advisor, investment advisor, or housing expert. I’m just a guy who cares deeply about saving the American Dream of homeownership.
Here's the buzz for the week of August 3, 2023…
Rates and prices continue to rise, low inventory persists, and a big part of the supply shortage can be attributed to homeowners feeling "locked-in" by existing low-rate mortgages.
The average rate for 30-year fixed mortgages increased to 7.26% this week, according to Bankrate.
Zillow and Redfin announced a partnership which dramatically expands the reach of new construction homes for sale.
Yahoo Finance writes prices have jumped 44% from pre-pandemic levels and could rise 6% overall in 2023.
USA Today shares that the number of existing homes purchased by foreign buyers decreased to the lowest level since 2009 during the period from April 2022 to March 2023.
CNBC says 82% of homeowners feel "locked-in" by their existing low-rate mortgage, as a shortage of homes for sale continues to push up prices.
For many potential sellers, the prospect of swapping a low-rate mortgage for a new rate that could be twice as high is simply a non-starter. Enter "mortgage porting," the practice of transferring the terms of your existing mortgage over to a new property, as explained by Realtor.com.
Business Insider suggests there are too many under-qualified real estate agents in the United States, and it puts buyers and sellers at risk of ending up with dubious advice on one of the biggest transactions of their lives. I believe it's critically important for buyers and sellers to have strong agents by their sides, and everything we've learned since launching our offering has served to reinforce this belief. Despite repeated attempts by technology companies to disintermediate agents from the homebuying process, data shows approximately 90% of buyers and sellers working with agents year after year. That why we've established partnerships with top agents in Massachusetts. Members of our community can be confident in their representation as more and more elect to pursue private sales with Bluebid Homes.
Have a great week.