Real Estate Market

September Market Report – Greater Lake Wylie Area

October 19, 2022 by lkw_df Leave a Comment

This time of year when we are headed into the holiday season, we expect to see fewer new listings hit the market. What we don’t typically see is the amount of inventory increasing at the same time. This shows just how different our market conditions have gotten this year.

The new monthly numbers from the Canopy Realtor Association show that inventory is up to a 1.6 month supply with 7,104 homes for sale. Homes are going under contract in an average of 22 days, up 37.5% from 16 days at this time last year. So, more homes are available and they are staying on the market longer. Prices however have continued to rise with the median home price now up to $380,000, up 13.4% from last September.

When we look at the numbers for just Lake Wylie, you see the same trend. There are now 176 homes for sale, up 19.7% from 147 homes for sale last September. These homes are going under contract in an average of 23 days up 15% from the 20 days last year. This shows stronger demand for homes at the lake than in the entire Charlotte region.

Prices in Lake Wylie are going up with the median price rising 19.6% to $549,990. Last September the median price was $460,000. This is a rise of just under $90,000 in just one year.

Between prices rising and interest rates being hiked, and the time of year, we are seeing fewer homes listed for sale than last year when we were in a frenzy of real estate transactions. New listings are down 19.7%, pending sales are down 27.1%, and closed sales are down 21.8% from last September.

All of these trends mean that buyers are finally gaining some leverage in transactions. Gone are the days when sellers got everything they wanted. Sellers are starting to offer to pay closing costs and/or buy down interest rates. Buyers are no longer waiving inspection clauses or appraisal clauses in contracts. Buyers are also not in as big of a rush to grab the last good deal so they can be much more discerning.

If you want to know more about buying and selling homes in the Lake Wylie Area, call us at 803-831-8588. You can view current listings and create custom searches on our website here.

Lake Wylie Homebuyers Have the Advantage

October 17, 2022 by lkw_df Leave a Comment

In the current real estate market, average homes are selling for just over $100,000 more than they were just two years ago. Interest rates have been climbing steadily to help combat inflation. That has left homebuyers with the prospect of purchasing a home that will cost them substantially more per month than two years ago, but wages have not increased at the same rate so they are feeling the pinch.

There is no relief with continuing to rent either. Rental prices have soared as landlords are having to pay more in taxes as home values are reassessed and as the costs for management and maintenance have risen sharply. They pass these costs directly to renters with higher pet deposits, increased rent payments, and maintenance fees.

So, why should buyers hold out any hope? Well, right now buyers are holding all of the cards except for the high interest rates. With more homes on the market, buyers are able to set a lot of the terms of real estate transactions including getting sellers to pay closing costs, having the seller pay down their interest rates, and being able to negotiate price. Dangerous practices such as waiving inspections and appraisals are not happening anymore further protecting buyers.

Buyers who felt rushed during the height of the frenzy now have time to consider decisions instead of being rushed into what is typically the largest single financial decision you will make. High interest rates won’t be around forever so the one downside can always be remedied by refinancing a loan when conditions are more favorable.

If you want to know more about buying and selling homes in the Lake Wylie Area, call us at 803-831-8588. You can view current listings and create custom searches on our website here.

August Market Report

September 12, 2022 by lkw_df Leave a Comment

This month, we are starting to see some more signs of the Real Estate market slowing down somewhat. For the first time in months, we are starting to see homes sell for a little bit less than list price. The average home sold for 98.5% of list price. These prices are still higher than last year by 16.3% representing $62,315 more this year than last. We are also starting to see homes stay on the market for longer with the average home going under after 19 days on the market. Inventory has also gone up with a 1.5 month supply of homes on the market which is 1,381 more homes than last August.

When you look at this data, from the Canopy Realtor Association, just for the Lake Wylie area, you see that the numbers reflect the same trend that the Charlotte Region shows. The average sales price is up to $613,732, up 17.5% year over year. These homes are selling for an average of 99% of list price and are going under contract in an average of 17 days after listing. Lake Wylie now has a 1.5 month supply of homes or 181 homes on the market, up 7.1% from 169 homes last August.

New listings, pending sales, and closed sales are all down from last August. This is likely a result of inflation and rising interest rates. The full effects of which we will likely see over the next few months. We will likely see inventory rising still higher, but prices could take a long time to come down if they do at all.

If you want to know more about buying and selling homes in the Lake Wylie Area, call us at 803-831-8588. You can view current listings and create custom searches on our website here.

July Market Report – Greater Lake Wylie Area

August 15, 2022 by lkw_df Leave a Comment

Once again, the monthly numbers have been published by the Canopy Realtor Association for the Greater Charlotte Metro Area and for the Greater Lake Wylie Area. The trend we are seeing is that there is more inventory of homes for sale, but prices have not yet dropped so we are still firmly in a seller’s market. This means that sellers have the upper hand in real estate transactions right now, but we are seeing signs that buyers have more power in negotiations.

When you look at the whole Charlotte region, you see that there is now a 1.4 month supply of homes, representing 6,637 listings. This is up 23.9% from 5,356 last July. The average sales price was up 15.4% from $397,474 last July to $458,635 this July. New listings, pending sales and closings were all down year over year as we see the effects of higher prices and higher interest rates reflected in the report.

When you look at the data for Lake Wylie, you see the same trend. There are 23 more homes for sale this year, or 14.1% more. Average price is up almost $24,000 in just one year or 4.4% higher. New listings are down 13.8%, pending sales are down 29.2%, and closed sales are down 47.8% year over year. Homes are still selling quickly, with the average home spending just 10 days on the market before going under contract. They are also still selling on average for 101.5% of list price.

With school starting, this is generally one of the slowest times of the year for real estate, especially for families who have kids in schools. However, it can be a great time of year to get a house because there is less competition from other buyers.

To learn more about the Real Estate Market or for information about buying or selling a home in the Lake Wylie area, call us at 803-831-8588. You can view current listings and create custom searches on our website here.

Recession Fears Loom

July 25, 2022 by lkw_df Leave a Comment

We have all noticed prices of goods and services going up over the last few months. From gasoline to groceries, rising prices have affected consumers in all income levels. But is this inflation a long term trend leading to a recession or will it resolve itself as quickly as it started. The answer is, it’s complicated.

There are a lot of factors that led to the current inflation we are seeing. In addition to other factors, the stimulus that the government distributed led to many more people buying goods. Manufacturing was down in capacity and supply chains were stretched thin due to the pandemic. The increased demand for a smaller amount of goods drove prices up. Then the war started in Ukraine. This led to oil prices rising and cost of food to go up as Russia produces a lot of the world’s oil supply and Ukraine supplies much of the grain and food. So, complicated.

Do you need to worry about a possible recession? If you own your home and have a fixed-rate mortgage, you don’t have too much to fear. Wages are up and unemployment is still low so if you lose a job, it should be pretty easy to find another one.

In addition, the government is releasing some controls to help stabilize the economy. The first line of defense is the Federal Reserve raising rates on some key indicators designed to slow inflation by making it more expensive for banks to borrow money. This in turn raises interest rates on loans and credit card debt which should slow things so the supply chain can catch up at last. They are also releasing barrels of oil from the strategic reserve and we have already seen prices at the pump lowering in the past weeks.

For the real estate market, we are seeing fewer homes with multiple offers the day they are listed. Prices have yet to come down, but that could happen if we do enter a recession.

To learn more about current market conditions or about buying or selling a home in the Lake Wylie area, call us at 803-831-8588. You can view current listings and create custom searches on our website here.

June Market Report – Greater Lake Wylie Area

July 18, 2022 by lkw_df Leave a Comment

The real estate market appears to be headed for a slight correction. According to the monthly data from the Canopy Realtor Association, the supply of homes in the Charlotte Region was up slightly in June, the first time in many months. This signals that the market may be slowing down from the furious pace it has sustained for the last few years. The supply of homes rose from 4,732 last June, to 5,334 this June, an increase of 602 homes or 12.7%.

Closed sales were also down year over year, with a decrease of 13.6%. New listings were up 4.1% year over year. These factors together signal that homes are spending longer on the market, and more people are listing their homes. Prices have yet to fall in accordance with the increased supply, we will have to wait to see if there is a corresponding price correction.

When you look at the numbers for Lake Wylie, you see a much smaller rise in inventory, just two homes more this year than last. It is not unusual for trends in smaller areas not to match the overall trend due to the small sample size. New listings, pending sales, and closings were all down year over year, 8%, 26.6%, and 26.9% respectively. Homes are still going under contract quickly, with the average of 16 days from list to contract.

Prices in the greater Lake Wylie area are still on the rise, with the average sales price coming in at $698,709 in June. This is up 36.1% from $513,455 last June. Sellers can also expect to get at or above list price with the average home selling for 102.3% of list price. This means that the market is still favoring sellers and will continue to do so until the supply of homes reaches a 4-6 month supply when the market is considered to be balanced between buyers and sellers. This shows that higher interest rates have not slowed buyers in our area yet.

If you want to know more about any home in the Lake Wylie area, call us at 803-831-8588. You can view current listings and create custom searches on our website here.

May Market Report – Greater Lake Wylie Area

June 24, 2022 by lkw_df Leave a Comment

Canopy Realtor Association has released the monthly numbers from the Canopy Multiple Listing Service. According to the report, the big story is that sales are down, and pending sales are also down for the Charlotte Region. This means lower sales volume this month and the expectation of lower sales volume next month as fewer sales are expected to close. This signals a cool down of the market, largely driven by rising interest rates for loans and higher prices for homes.

Inventory of homes is still below one month of supply, and we are seeing more homes sell above list price than in the past few months with the average sale commanding 102.9% of list price. This means that we have not seen the recovery in the market we expected, but new listings were up 4.4% as some sellers are worried they will miss out on the action of the current market.

When you look at just the numbers for the Greater Lake Wylie area, you see that sales are down 21%, pending sales are down 21.7%, and new listings have not had the resurgence of the Charlotte area as a whole as they are down 11.7%. Please keep in mind that the small sample size can make the data seem extreme.

Prices are still on the rise in Lake Wylie with the average sale price up to $600,717 in May. This is up 15.9% from May of 2021. Homes are selling for an average of 102.4% of list price and are going under contract in about 17 days on average with closing in 109 days after listing on average.

What does that mean for you as a buyer or a seller? As a buyer, it means that homes are out there, but you might need to wait until the perfect home is listed which could mean that you will have a higher interest rate as the Federal Reserve keeps raising the benchmark rate. As a seller, it means that there could be lots of buyers for your home, but as interest rates rise, your home might be on the market for a longer time before a sale.

If you want to know more about the market conditions in Lake Wylie, call us at 803-831-8588. You can view current listings and create custom searches on our website here.

What to Know about Adjustable Rate Mortgages

June 6, 2022 by lkw_df Leave a Comment

Adjustable Rate Mortgages used to be very common, but over the last few years, they fell out of fashion, especially because rates were so low that it made more sense for buyers to lock in on a fixed low rate. So, once again, adjustable rate mortgages are back in the news. They come into prominence when rates start to rise and can be risky, or can be a great tool. Here’s what you need to know.

An adjustable rate mortgage or ARM can be appealing because the introductory interest rate is often lower than the current rates for fixed-rate mortgages. For example, the current rates for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages are just above 5% right now, the highest they have been since late 2018. The initial rate on a 5/1 ARM loan is just above 4% right now.

The 5 in 5/1 ARM loan represents the introductory term for the interest rate. After that, the 1 in the 5/1 represents how often the interest rate can change. Depending on the lender and the loan, you can have a 3/1, 5/1, 7/1 or 10/1 adjustable rate loan. If the market rate is higher than the initial rate, your mortgage payment will go up after that initial introductory period is over, if it is lower, then your mortgage payment will go down, if it is the same, your payment will remain unchanged. This means that an ARM loan can be risky for many people, especially people on a fixed income. There are generally caps on the rate jumps at the adjustment period, and caps on the rate for the life of the loan so your payment won’t be able to grow exponentially.

So, ARM loans can be really attractive for buyers who expect to be selling before the introductory period is over. They can also be perfect for a buyer who expects to refinance before their rate adjusts. But, since you can’t predict future market conditions, you may be stuck with a mortgage that is unfavorable to you and you can’t get out of it. Generally, if a home is more expensive, the savings on the rate during the introductory period could make the risk worthwhile. For lower priced homes, the risk may outweigh the benefit so a fixed-rate mortgage might still be right for you.

For a recommendation for a great mortgage broker, or to schedule a showing on a home in the Lake Wylie area, call us at 803-831-8588. You can view current listings and create custom searches on our website here.