A Note from Mary
The list of ways the pandemic has affected life feels unending. These changes and ramifications will likely be studied for many years to come. People are realizing what makes them most comfortable at home and are seeking open spaces, quiet comforts and peace.
These trends are apparent in the shift taking place in the real estate market as we search for health and tranquility both in our homes and home settings.
No one knows for sure what the next months or years will look like in our lives. However, across the nation people are being intentional about finding the silver linings despite the disruption that has occurred in our lives.
Please feel free to reach out if you have any questions about the market, the value of your home, or need help finding a home - we are here to help!
Take care and stay safe and healthy!
Mary
THE LATEST UNEMPLOYMENT RATE FELL TO 8.4%
There is Light at the End of The Tunnel
Last Friday, the Bureau for Labor Statistics released their Employment Report for August 2020. The big surprise was that the unemployment rate fell to 8.4%, a full percent lower than what many analysts had forecasted earlier in the week. Though it is tough to look at this as great news when millions of Americans are still without work, the number of unemployed is currently much lower than most experts had projected it would be just a few months ago.
Not Like the Great Depression or Even the Great Recession
Jason Furman, Professor of Practice at Harvard explained:
"An unemployment rate of 8.4% is much lower than most anyone would have thought it a few months ago. It is still a bad recession but not a historically unprecedented event or one we need to go back to the Great Depression for comparison."
During the Great Depression, the unemployment rate was over 20% for four consecutive years (1932 - 1935). This April, the rate jumped to 14.7%, but has fallen each month since.
During and after the Great Recession (2007-2009), the unemployment rate was at 9% or greater for thirty consecutive months (April 2009 - October 2011). Most economists believe the current rate will continue to fall monthly as the economy regains its strength.
What Happens Going Forward?
The outcome will be determined by how quickly we can contain the virus. In their last Economic Forecasting Survey, the Wall Street Journal reported the economists surveyed believe the annual unemployment rates will be 6.6% in 2021 and 5.5% in 2022. Though that will still be greater than the 3.5% rate that we saw earlier this year, it is lower than the annual rate reported in 2011 (8.5%), 2012 (7.9%), and 2013 (6.7%).
THE 2020 HOMEBUYER WISH LIST
Homeowner's Everyday Needs Have Changed
HOW WILL THE PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION IMPACT REAL ESTATE?
The year 2020 will be remembered as one of the most challenging times of our lives. A worldwide pandemic, a recession causing historic unemployment, and a level of social unrest perhaps never seen before have all changed the way we live. Only the real estate market seems to be unaffected, as a new forecast projects there may be more homes purchased this year than last year.
As we come to the end of this tumultuous year, we're preparing for perhaps the most contentious presidential election of the century. Today, it is important to look at the impact past presidential election years have had on the real estate market.
Is there a drop-off in home sales during a presidential election year?
BTIG, a research and analysis company, looked at new home sales from 1963 through 2019 in their report titled One House, Two House, Red House, Blue House. They noted that in non-presidential years, there is a -9.8% decrease in November compared to October. This is the normal seasonality of the market, with a slowdown in activity that's usually seen in fall and winter. However, it also revealed that in presidential election years, the typical drop increases to -15% as potential homebuyers may become more cautious in the face of national election uncertainty.
Are those sales lost forever?
No. BTIG determined:
"This caution is temporary, and ultimately results in deferred sales, as the economy, jobs, interest rates and consumer confidence all have far more meaningful roles in the home purchase decision than a Presidential election result in the months that follow."
In a separate study done by Meyers Research & Zonda, Ali Wolf, Chief Economist, agrees that those purchases are just delayed until after the election:
"History suggests that the slowdown is largely concentrated in the month of November. In fact, the year after a presidential election is the best of the four-year cycle. This suggests that demand for new housing is not lost because of election uncertainty, rather it gets pushed out to the following year."
Will it matter who is elected?
To some degree, but not in the overall number of home sales. As mentioned above, consumer confidence plays a significant role in a family's desire to buy a home. Again, overall sales should not be impacted in a significant way.
