The Impact of the Election on the Jacksonville Market

I’ve been hearing a lot of talk about how the upcoming election is affecting our current real estate market. Many agents are saying that the election prevents some buyers and sellers from entering the market because they are waiting to see who will be in the White House this fall.

Here in our local market, though, the election is not affecting anything. All that talk about the election might just be an excuse some agents have for why a home hasn’t sold yet because if you look at the market numbers, things have not slowed down yet.

The election certainly isn’t holding home sales back; in fact, they have gone up. So far this year, 13,700 homes have sold. That number is up almost 5% from the same period last year.

The median sales price has also gone up 7% year over year. On a local level, I don’t see any impact from the election. If anything, the market has actually gotten stronger. I don’t see anything holding us back as we get closer and closer to this election.

Home sales and home prices are both up year over year!

If you have any questions, give me a call or send me an email. I would be happy to help you!

How to Take Advantage of the 2 Jacksonville Markets

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There are two markets that exist right now here in the Jacksonville area.

The first is the market for houses below $500,000. This is definitely a seller’s market, meaning there is not a lot of inventory but it’s selling very quickly. A lot of our buyers are taking the opportunity in relation to this by selling their houses below the $500,000 mark. Then, they're taking advantage of low interest rates and their new buying power to move up over the $500,000 mark in their next purchase. The market for houses between $500,000 and one million, then, represents the buyer’s market.

So, you see people selling in the seller’s market - which they’re doing quickly for top dollar and without many contingencies - and then moving up to buy in the buyer’s market where there are more choices and more room to negotiate. For the select few of us who are able to get into that higher end luxury market above $1 million, we’re seeing more than a 24-month supply. That’s an extreme buyer’s market, so if you have the means and the ability to get into that price point, you have a lot of choices and a lot of opportunities to get the right house at the right terms that are best for you and your family.

If you’d like to talk about positioning your home for sale or you’d like to discuss getting yourself in position to get out and buy the right home, reach out by emailing me directly or visiting our website and contacting me from there. Also, make sure you listen to our radio show, Real Estate 911, every Wednesday on WBOB AM 600 from 2:00 pm to 3:00 pm. I’ll talk to you soon.

My Jacksonville Real Estate Predictions for 2016

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Today, I want to go over my 2016 real estate market predictions. In order to understand where we're going, first you have to know where we're coming from.

2015 had the highest volume of sales in Northeast Florida that we've seen since the bubble years. Last year, 26,607 properties sold. That is an incredibly high number of transactions!

Not only did the number of transactions increase, but home values are up as well. Overall, our market saw an average of 6.9% appreciation, which is way over what a normal average would be.

In 2016, I believe the volume of home sales will be somewhere in that mid-20,000 range, with 24,000 to 26,000 transactions. However, we should see more modest appreciation in the 3 to 5% range.

I also predict that 2016 will be the year of the buyer. The Fed started raising interest rates at the end of 2015, and they should continue to increase throughout 2016. I expect interest rates will be at 5.25% by the end of the year, so buyers will be trying to lock in low rates this year.

Additionally, here in Jacksonville, a lot of our renters put 50% of their income into their lease. In short, most renters are paying way more money than they should. These renters could probably buy a house for less money than what they're paying to rent it.

Finally, Jacksonville has an incredibly young population. Millennial buyers should be out and about in 2016 looking to make that first real estate purchase. These three factors combined make 2016 the year of the buyer.

However, all this market activity still makes 2016 a great year to sell. If you have any questions, give me a call or send me an email. I would be happy to help you!