Pleasant Hill Real Estate Expert Jason Wheeler

The springtime sellers market is heating up and we normally post a seasonally regarding, seller trends, buyer activity, mortgage rates and general market forecast for Pleasant Hill.

Here is our post for last fall 2018.

Contra Costa Home Stats for February

According the California Association of Realtors most recent market report. The median sold price of existing single family home is down in Contra Costa by 10.8% year over year but UP 15% over last month. Contra Costa has the highest drop year over year compared to any other County located within the San Francisco Bay Area.

Most reputable forecasts are suggesting that the home values will continue to increase but at a slower rate than previous years.

For instance, last year we say home values increase in Pleasant Hill by 3.2% according to a popular home value index. Current forecasts are lower at 2.3%

This may be a good time for a home buyer to stop and do some personal calculations on the cost of waiting to buy a home, assuming that the forecasts are correct.

Spring Fever Seller Season

With the rain beginning to go away, the sun staying out longer and shining brighter, those who have been thinking about selling their Pleasant Hill home are gearing up to take action and list on open market.

Another driving force to increased inventory on market is a general sentiment that a recession may be coming soon forcing potential sellers to believe that now may be their last chance to get top dollar for their home sale before we may see a dip in pricing.

We are seeing more and more listings every week and busy open house and showing schedules.

Here is the recent Real Estate Activity in Pleasant Hill.

Mortgage Rates See a Huge Push

The bond market dropped sharply and mortgage rates followed suit as usual with the FED reversing its direction on the aggressive rate increases we were told to expect due to many fears on the forward momentum of the economy.

While a recession does not look like it right around the corner and jobs number are still very strong a few recent events such as a very rare inverted yield curve the likes we have not seen since 2007 have caused the powers that be to be more cautious even though unemployment is near all-time lows at 3.8% and forecast to stay very strong for the near future.

In an effort to keep confidence for home buyers and the general market strong the FED has had mortgage rates coming down, exciting home buyers that were seriously fatigued this time last year due to buyer’s competition and rising interest rates of 2018

These lower interest rates are contributing to home sales bouncing back this spring.

Mortgage Applications Trends

Mortgage application volume was up significantly at 9.13% in January and February for home purchase pre approvals.

This is usually a very good indication that those thinking of buying a home are ramping up to be in the market in spring time.

With a recent drop in interest rates within just the last weeks we are expecting an even larger increase in mortgage application volume for march.

I’ll tell you this…

Our Pleasant Hill lending division office off Contra Costa Blvd has personally seen a large increase in the recent weeks for mortgage application volume for both purchase applications and refinance applications much higher than the reported amount of 9.13%.

Conclusion

1. Home sales in the local market slowed down significantly in the last quarter or 2018 and continues to be below previous levels in the first part of 2019.

2. Many key indicators and recent triggering events are pointing toward a busy spring selling season.

3. We are looking to see a busy spring seller season with a bit more of a balance between buyer and seller compared to the first part of 2018 where sellers were almost 100% in control, where most listings were heavily competitive, multiple offers were the norm, and closing prices were well over asking.

4. If you are a buyer be ready to compete for the pristine turnkey properties this spring, but you may have more negotiating room and less competition on homes that are less updated and or desirable.

5. If you are thinking of selling your home, you may have to be ready for a higher than normal amount of competing listings as many who’ve been thinking of selling feel that this spring may be the best time with recession being on the minds of many and also in the news… Many sellers believe this could be their last chance in a while to sell their home for top dollar.

Be reasonable with your listing price, and aware that buyers may be warier this spring… make sure you look at the benefits of trying to sell for top dollar vs selling your home quickly.

The Real Estate agent you’re consulting with should be able to give you a good value range supported by hard data and experience, and also explain the benefits vs costs of where you choose to list your home on the spectrum.

Always trust your gut when you're interviewing an agent to sell your home.

Should I Buy a Home in 2019 In Pleasant Hill?

Is now a good time for you to buy your first home?

Here's my litmus test I tell people to ask themselves in order to come to a good conclusion.

If you already know you love the Pleasant Hill and you will be planting down roots here for about at least the next 7 to 10 years, then buying a home in Pleasant Hill is a much better play than renting...

...provided that you could say yes to the following three questions.

YES I can absolutely afford my monthly payments on the mortgage.

YES I will absolutely have a large reserve fund after I purchased the home. At least six months of expenses.

YES If a recession DOES hit and my home value goes down temporarily, I will still be happy in my home and have a great place to live that I can afford.

Those three questions above are my bulletproof litmus test on whether not you should buy real estate, regardless of how prices are, what the market is doing and how mortgage rates are moving.

Jason Wheeler

Aspiring to be your chosen Pleasant Hill Real Estate Expert