For most people, purchasing a home represents the largest financial transaction they will undertake, and it is often viewed as a pathway to increasing net worth. According to CoreLogic, U.S. homeowners with mortgages held over $17.6 trillion in net homeowner equity in the second quarter of 2024. This equity grew by $1.3 trillion during that quarter, reflecting an 8.0% increase from the previous year.
Mortgage interest rates have been trending higher over the past 30 days, leading to potentially increased costs for new borrowers of approximately $30 per month for every $100,000 borrowed. As of this week, the average U.S. interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages stands at 6.54%, up from 6.08% a month ago. However, forecasts for future interest rate changes remain mixed as the recent short-term interest rate reduction caused a spike in mortgage interest rates.
We have certainly had some of our local areas hit with more flooding issues than at any other time in the last decade. Just so we are all aware, Florida has implemented a new law that is intended to provide additional transparency to future home buyers. See the infographic below from Florida Realtors for more.
The Sarasota County single-family home market looks to be a few months ahead of Manatee, assuming both counties continue on their pre-existing trends. The balance of power in Sarasota County is closer to a buyers’ market than Manatee, but it isn’t quite there yet. It is still a reasonable market to participate in whether you are buying or selling. One of the big shifts we saw in terms of year-over-year results in Sarasota County was percent of sales that were all cash. It was down materially from 2023. That may be telling us that investors are backing off the market for now. The infographic from Florida Realtors below contains more information.
August final statistics for Single-Family Homes in Manatee County showed a continuation of existing trends. New listings outpaced closed home sales, which continued to drive up inventory levels. The additional inventory on the market is moving the balance of power slowly towards buyers. At this point, there is still a pretty decent power balance between buyers and sellers, but if this trend continues, the market will shift squarely into a buyers’ market in Manatee. The infographic below from Florida Realtors contains more.
