I know that the cold and snow is off putting for alot of homeowners who are getting ready to list their homes for the market but delaying could be a mistake.  Snow or no snow…inventory is really low and thus competition for the few good homes could drive up prices…until everyone else gets their house on the market.

Our company President, Jim Dohr was at our office on Tuesday and gave us all some information on what’s happening out there in the housing market and also in the lending world.  It’s all good.  SO DON’T DELAY!

The overall picture is good…interest rates are at near 2 year lows – 3.85% on a 30 year fixed..   The unemployment rate is declining somewhat as are oil prices.  All of these factors help to drive up consumer confidence.   A University of Michigan study shows the consumer confidence index at an 11 year high.   In a nutshell, more people are employed – and we hope they are in full time positions- combined with lower gas prices helps put more money in the pockets of the consumer.

Challenges in the real estate market are as I have mentioned above  LOW INVENTORY!!!   We only have 4 months of inventory ….new listings are going up but not rebuilding fast enough to keep up with demand.   So while it’s not quite spring….listing now could be beneficial to  seller.   I cannot emphasize this enough.

On the lending front, tight credit continues to be an issue.   The average credit score for 50% of all mortgages in 2014 was over 740.  In the early 2000’s credit scores were usually around 680.   FHA premiums have increased by 145% from 2010-2014 but many renters could not afford the increased premiums!  We are hearing of some lenders easing the credit score requirements.  We are also getting news that there are now conventional loans that can be gotten with on 3% downpayment.  Not all lenders are on board with this yet but the lower down payment could be a viable alternative to the FHA loans that most first time buyers use.   The other positive is the FHA has lowered the monthly premium from 1.35% to .85%!  This saves the homeowner on a $200,000 loan about $83/month!  This will really help sales increase in the coming years with first time home buyers who often use FHA loans.

The St. Louis area is one of the up and coming  areas in business and is being hailed a “hub of innovation”  with tech and other companies finding it a very affordable place to start a business.  The phrase “the Silicon Prairie” is being used to describe our area as the exorbitant prices in California make starting a business or affording housing almost impossible for most people.   St Louis ranks in the top 5 in major US metro areas in affordability!

Don’t delay.  Timing has not been better!  Lots of great things going on!