Let's reflect on the up's and down's of the real estate market in the past ten years. These five points have made a massive impact today in the Staten Island real estate market:
Market Collapse & The Great Recession
In October 2007, the U.S. Secretary of the Treasury called the bursting housing bubble "the most significant risk to our economy," becoming a massive part of the Great Recession. Washington Mutual declared bankruptcy and the domino effect was larger than ever as housing prices dropped drastically. As a result - home values depreciated and homeowners lost their savings and investment, forcing millions of foreclosures.
Federal Takeover of Fannie and Freddie
Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac were taken control over by the federal government temporary with a $187-billion bailout to prevent further destabilizing to the American economy because of decreasing stock prices in September 2008.
Although under federal control, Fannie and Freddie continue to guarantee over half of new home mortgages and protect the existence of 30-year fixed rate mortgages that were highly favorable to home buyers.
Mortgage Rates Hit Historic Low
Bouncing off of the 30-year fixed rate mortgages, in late 2012, the average interest rate reached a record low of 3.31%. A struggling economy and federal policies aimed to stimulate the housing market resulted in mortgage rates, which monthly payments were a minimum of $980.
Courtesy of the increase in home buyer demand - the White House encourage homeowners to refinance at the lower rates through federal programs, and home prices grew.
The Internet Becomes a Lead Generator
The Internet has become a powerful tool in real estate and in any other industry. Consumers and future home buyers can access information right at their fingertips. Yes, home buyers can go home hunting on sites like Zillow, Trulia, etc.; however, they are still not accurate information compared to what a Staten Island real estate professional can provide you.
No information is as accurate and up-to-date as the Multiple Listing System, which only real estate agents have access to.
Millennials Enter the Real Estate World
As the millennial generation, aka Generation Y, enter the housing market, they are molding the preference of how the real estate business is done. Many Staten Island millennial home buyers get recommendations on agents from their parents, and before they get on the phone with an agent - they do some online research on Staten Island listings and real estate professionals. That's why it's important for an agent to be building up their social media presence and post reviews from previous clients.
"This group relies on technology. More than 50 percent of millennials search for homes on their phones and, among those, 26 percent end up buying a home they found that way, according to data from the National Association of Realtors." (x)
Posted by Tom Crimmins Realty on
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