f you’re planning on buying a home, it’s important to understand what’s going on in the real estate market. But with so much happening, it can be challenging to know where to start.
So, from an economist’s perspective, what do buyers need to know?
In a recent article, realtor.com’s chief economist Danielle Hale shared what she thinks home buyers need to know about today’s real estate market, including:
- Inventory has dramatically improved in the past year. If you’re looking for a home, good news—compared to this time last year, there’s a lot more inventory to choose from. “Our June Housing Trends Report shows that housing inventory has made the biggest about-face ever in a one year period of time, rising 18.7% over this time last year,” Hale said in the article.
- Pay attention to your local market. While there is plenty of data on the real estate market as a whole, that national data may or may not apply to where you’re trying to buy a home—so while it’s fine to keep your finger on the pulse of what’s going on nationally, when it comes to your experience buying a home it’s more important to research your local market. “The local area where you’re trying to buy could be more or less buyer-friendly than the national data indicates,” Hale said in the article.
- Make sure you’re in a financial position to buy. In the midst of some economic challenges and uncertainty, it’s more important than ever to really look at your finances and make sure you’re in the position to buy before you start looking for homes. So, what does “being in the position to buy” look like? “Mortgage calculators and lenders will advise you based on financial rules of thumb that suggest you should spend no more than 28% of your income on housing payments and no more than 36% to 50% on total debt payments, including housing, student loans and car loans,” Hale said in the article.