By Evan Vitale
Are you looking to buy or sell a home in 2016? If so, what will the market be like during the upcoming year? Will it be a buyer’s market with deals aplenty, or are the sellers in charge over the next 12 months?
As with any prediction story, there will always be two sides.
However, according to most housing experts:
Current homeowners should expect another good year of solid gains in housing prices. After the housing bust four years ago, prices have been moving steadily higher. Most are predicting another gain in the middle single digits, while there are some expectations that prices nationwide could be close to the all-time high reached a decade ago.
If you’re looking to sell your home, the market conditions should be good. Due to the historically low number of new and existing homes for sale, it will create more of a seller’s market this year.
While this might cause homeowner prices to rise, potential buyers are benefiting from an improving job market, continued low mortgage rates and easier credit. Note: fixed mortgage rates are probably not going to stay below 4% much longer in 2016, but they don’t appear to rise sharply either.
The Federal Housing Administration, which helps first-time buyers get mortgages, cut its fees last year and it may do so again soon as its finances continue to improve. This will allow more first-time home-buyers a better opportunity to get into a new home in 2016.
Where are the hot real estate markets in 2016?
According to Zillow.com, low unemployment, rising home appreciation and strong income growth, Denver will be the hottest residential real estate market in the United States this year.
Following Denver, according to Zillow, will be Seattle, Dallas-Fort Worth, Richmond, Virginia and Boise, Idaho.
Zillow predicts Denver homes will appreciate by 5% in 2016 and expects income to grow 1.1% along with an annual unemployment rate of 3.1%. Those three factors, says Zillow, make Denver the hottest real estate market this year.
