Spring is coming. This means spring selling season is here.
And while this not something unusual, this year, the demands are higher than usual. According to the National Association of Realtors (NAR), this demand has surged nationwide.
The many years of uninterrupted job growth may cause this increase in consumers’ confidence. Another factor contributing to the surge is the positive sentiment that the overall economy is improving.
NAR Chief Economist Lawrence Yun said, “Confidence levels generally rise after a presidential election as the nation hopes for the best. Even though it is a highly polarized country, consumers, for the most part, have upbeat feelings about the economy right now.”
In a report dating March 29, NAR sees a 5.5% leap in February for pending home sales. From 106.4 in January, it rose to 112.3 the following month. This is the highest in almost a year and the second-highest since May 2006.
“The country’s healthy labor market is translating to greater job security,” Yun said. Affordability, however, seems to have not improved as much because there are still areas where prices are, “still outpacing incomes by three times or more because of tight supply”, He said.
Since listings go under contract very quickly, there can be a struggle in making new supplies available. Yun said he expects to see an ebb and flow in the activity for this reason.
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NAR: Single-Family Housing Starts Rise
In February, housing starts, Single-family and Multifamily included, rose 3 percent higher to an annual rate of 1.228 Million units. The Single-family production jumped 6.5 percent higher in the same month. This is the highest recorded in the last decade with 872,000 units.
NAR further reports that housing production for both single-family and multifamily units has the biggest leap in the West at 35.7%. Northeast, Midwest and South, however, was seen with percentage decreases.
