The Orange County Housing Report: No Bargains

August 8, 2022 / By Steven Thomas

IN COMPARING THIS YEAR TO LAST YEAR, THE HOUSING MARKET IS PROFOUNDLY DIFFERENT WITH HIGHER MORTGAGE RATES, MORE AVAILABLE HOMES, MUCH LOWER DEMAND, AND SIGNIFICANTLY LONGER MARKET TIMES.

NOT A BUYER’S MARKET
THE INSANE, INSTANTANEOUS HOUSING MARKET MAY BE GONE, YET WITH AN EXPECTED MARKET TIME OF 67 DAYS, ORANGE COUNTY IS STILL A SLIGHT SELLER’S MARKET.

The looming recession has buyers on the edge of their seats fully aware that the housing market has slowed considerably.  From the flood of online news articles describing the real estate slowdown to the countless YouTube and Tik Tok videos detailing in only a few minutes how housing is about to crash, many buyers are convinced that the Orange County housing market is on the brink of collapse.  Homes are taking longer to sell.  As a result, many buyers sit on the sidelines waiting for prices to plunge.  They are waiting for a deal, a total bargain.

Just because so many people are jumping to the conclusion that home values must plummet does not make it so.  Merely  mention a recession and everyone’s collective minds recall the devastating blow to housing during the Great Recession.  Instead, homeowners across the country purchased their homes with huge down payments, extremely strong credit scores, money in the bank, and qualified for their mortgages.  Buyers over the past many years have not been purchasing homes utilizing subprime loans, pick-a-payment plans, teaser rate adjustable mortgages, or zero down programs.  This is not 2005 to 2008 all over again.

Instead an expected market time (the time between hammering in the FOR SALE sign to opening escrow) of 67 days, it is a Slight Seller’s Market (between 60 and 90 days).  It is not a Balanced Market (between 90 and 120 days). It is not a Buyer’s Market.

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