Experts in the financial and housing fields are showing that the recession may be coming to an end. For those in the real estate business, this could mean good news. Ever since the recession came into full swing last year, home sales have taken a sharp plunge, which foreclosures have risen just as sharply. Thousands of homeowners have lost their homes and have been forced to move.
April, however, showed that this downward trend might be turning around. According to the National Association of Realtors, existing home sales have risen 2.9 percent this month. While this is still almost five percent lower than the April figures from last year, it is a promising sign that foreclosures will level out and the economy will come around.
Many realty experts explain that we are in a dual market at this point, with low cost homes being sold at a higher rate, but higher priced home sales still sitting stagnant. For those investors who are brave enough to look into buying a home at this point in time, be prepared for competition. Home prices have plummeted since January, the lowest point in the current housing recession. Because of this fact, there are more than just one or two people interested in many homes. In fact, current pricing on low end homes and fixer uppers have sparked bid wars in more than one state.
On the other end of the spectrum, high priced luxury homes still remain vacant. While their smaller counterparts are selling like hotcakes, it is still hard to find and obtain a mortgage for large amounts, rendering larger, pricier homes untouchable. Since most banks keep these so called Jumbo Loans on their own books, it is never risk free for them. Thus, lending standards for these loans have gotten much tighter, and virtually no one is approved.
Although the market is rallying around the improved home sales in many parts of the country, experts and analysts are still concerned. Over half of all homes sold today are being sold by distressed buyers or are foreclosed homes, and realtors are running out of inventory of this type. The main worry is that once these homes have sold; there will be another sharp dip in real estate sales.
National movers are suffering the housing ups and downs as well. Since moving and real estate are so closely entwined, it comes as no surprise. While many people still need to move, they are choosing options that seem cheaper and do most of the work themselves.
“They don’t realize that they are paying more when you add everything up. Hiring professional national moving companies really is not that much more expensive if you think about the transport, packing, food, lodging, and other aspects of moving yourself,” says John Parker of North Carolina. Having moved twice in the last year, he knows firsthand of the price difference. “I moved myself the first time, but found out that I actually saved money by hiring a company the second time.”
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