DALLAS-FORT WORTH REAL ESTATE UPDATE NOVEMBER 15, 2019

Each week we condense market data and highlights from the news into an easily understandable blog post.

It's quick and Incredibly Informative with no fluff.

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Interest Rates
Interest rates ticked up this week to a current average of 3.75% for a thirty-year fixed-rate mortgage with .6% in fees and points. That’s in increase of 6 basis points from last week.
 
According to Freddie Mac, this increase can be attributed to a decrease in recession fears and an overall more optimistic outlook on the global economy.
 
If there’s a quote from the news to give you the warm fuzzies about real estate in 2020, it would be from Freddie Mac’s Economic & Housing Research group: “Given the important role residential real estate plays in the economy, the steady improvement of the housing market is a reassuring sign that the economy is on solid ground heading into next year.”

Source: Click Here

Mortgage News
The latest mortgage application survey shows that mortgage applications have increased to their highest level in over a month. A trend that is usually on the downswing in the winter months is on the rise. The MBA credits positive consumer sentiment and increased optimism around the U.S. and China dispute as factors for this current wave of buyer confidence.

The Mortgage Bankers Association issued a press release yesterday stating mortgage delinquencies have fallen to their lowest level in nearly 25 years. They point to a healthy labor market and strong economic growth as factors in reducing the number of mortgage delinquencies. 

News from the Federal Reserve
On Wednesday the Federal Reserve Bank of New York delivered a press release stating the total household debt has increased by .7% to $13.95 trillion for the third quarter of this year. Much of this increase is from near-record high auto loan originations and significant increases in mortgage originations.

This week we heard from Jerome Powell, Chair of the Federal Reserve, in a testimony to the Joint Economic Committee. Here are some of the interesting points from his testimony:

• “The U.S. economy is now in the 11th year of this expansion, and the baseline outlook remains favorable.”
• “Looking ahead, my colleagues and I see a sustained expansion of economic activity, a strong labor market, and inflation near our symmetric 2 percent objective as most likely."

DFW Market Stats
This week we’re taking a look at the North Texas Real Estate Information System MLS Area Housing Activity Report from the Real Estate Center at Texas A&M University. Usually our stats are focused on all types of properties listed in the MLS. Today we’re going to look at some specific housing types and break up the data a little.
 
The number of single-family sales are up 3% from a year ago. The average price is up two percent from a year ago to an average of $317,518.
 
The average time on market for a single family home is up 15% from a year ago to 51 days.
 
The largest price class for single family homes sold year-to-date is from $200,000 to $299,999. That price class has 35% of this year’s sales.
 
An interesting statistic, There were 151 sales for single family homes over $1 million in October. That’s an increase of 1.7% from last year. Year-to-date there have been 1,528 single-family homes sold over $1 million, an increase of 2% from last year. But if you’re a seller in this high-end market, don’t get too excited about these stats. There are currently 9.3 months of inventory on the market for homes over $1 million. This means if nothing new came on the market in this price range, it would take over 9 months for the current supply to sell given the current demand. That makes the $1million+ price point a buyer’s market for negotiations.
 
If you’re considering renting, five percent more properties were leased in October of this year than last year. The pricing has gone up to 3%. The current average rent for North Texas is $1,838.

The Takeaway
We can see from the numbers that the market is still positive for sellers unless you’re in the over $1 million market. The general the consensus of the immediate economic future is positive. This will likely give buyers the confidence they need to get into the market if they haven’t already jumped in.
 
If you like hearing these stats and want more detailed data on your neighborhood, head over to CrestEdgeRealEstate.com/neighborhoods.
 
If you’re looking to buy or sell real estate in DFW, let’s talk.