I can hardly remember a Super Bowl game without frigid weather or snow and sleet in Atlanta. I definitely can't recall ever being in mid-February with afternoons in the high 60s. I am planning my outfits to accommodate 2 to 3 different seasons. Not just dressing for Winter. This quick change in the weather makes me feel like spring is already here, and the push in buyer and seller activity makes this February appear to be an official start of the "spring real estate market."
I recently read, "Since at least the mid-2000s, the typical length of ownership has trended upward. In 2005, the median length of ownership stood at 6.5 years, with tenure rising to 13.4 years by 2020," according to Redfin data. "With the increased pace of home sales in 2021 and 2022, the ownership tenure dropped but remains at the high end of the two-decade spectrum." The rise in tenure stems from two trends: one, homeowners are more frequently aging in place, and two, many homeowners have secured record-low mortgage rates. I knew that I had been living in my house for a long time (20 years), but I had no idea that the average in 2020 was almost 14 years.
I recall saying that the average homeownership was seven years. That makes sense with life changes people progress through, from having kids to high school and college graduations and eventually downsizing. Here again, interest rates are in the lead of our housing trends. How affordable is it for me to move? Does it make more sense for me to stay right where I am? These are questions American homeowners face.
"Now homeowners 65 years or older are the fastest growing group of homeowners, increasing by 34.1 percent between 2012 and 2022. The older, 65-years-old-plus homeowners in 2022 represented approximately a third of all homeowners (32.8 percent). The growth in older households has one major inventory implication. Older homeowners move less frequently than their younger counterparts, as opposed to younger people, who move frequently because of life-changing events…" quoted from Redfin. Many homeowners refinanced their homes over the past several years when mortgage rates reached all-time lows, locking these homeowners into a rate much lower than they could secure now. In the first quarter of 2023, nearly two-thirds (61.0 percent) of outstanding mortgage loans carried an interest rate of less than 4 percent. That makes an excellent argument for staying put for a while, but it is not the only factor influencing buying and selling.
Homeownership is a process of many small decisions that inevitably lead to a huge decision. The first time you think, "We could use a bigger/smaller house." or "I wonder what it is like living downtown/midtown?" The process of navigating decisions starts. It can take a few months or years. Take the time to look at it from all angles: financial, location, and timing. Staying put has economic advantages, just as moving to an up-and-coming community does. Real estate advice is never cookie-cutter. Every client's situation is unique for them. That's part of this job I love the most; I work with sellers and buyers over and over, year in and year out, but no two circumstances are ever the same.
I love listening to people and their situation, working through what renovations to do, looking at new cities to consider, deciding to refinance and stay put, as well as selling homes. There is so much more to homeownership than inventory and interest rates. I am happy to lend an ear and work through your big decisions with you.
