Is it true? Could it be possible that bad weather can affect home sales in a negative way? The answer is… yes! The housing market gets a lot busier during the months of March through June. It is during these four months when more than half of the United States home sales take place. The housing market is getting a late start this year due to the severe weather most of the country is experiencing. The northeast region of the U.S. has endured cold and rigid temperatures. Those states have dealt with snow, rain, and sleet. The northwest region of the U.S. has endured temperatures of the low teens and twenties. Not many house shoppers want to drive in blizzards to look for a home.
Before anyone can sell their home by putting it on the market, they need to have a new place to move into. The restless weather has made it extremely difficult for people to go “house-hunting.” It has left many shoppers and home sellers frustrated.
Here are a few home sales record lows:
- According to the National Association of Realtors, home sales declined in February, so much so that it was lowest level since mid-2012.
- According to the Realtor’s Group, the number of home purchasing contracts fell in February to the lowest since 2011.
- According to the Mortgage Bankers Association, the number of applications for mortgages to purchase homes dropped to the lowest level since 1995, in February.
Many government agencies and housing forecasters believe that the sales of existing homes will go up to about 5.14 million by the end of 2014. Some even think that the mortgage lending for home purchases will total to be approximately $661 billion. Only time will tell how the home sales will go. Hopefully the weather for the month of April will give more home buyers and sellers a chance to go see homes and put their houses in the market. Maybe the next few months’ home sales will make up for the amount of home sale lows the U.S. has experienced.
Most of the time, those who are eager to purchase a home are looking forward to locking on a good mortgage rate before the borrowing costs rise. Fannie Mae just recently stated that the average U.S. mortgage rate for a 30-year fixed mortgage is 4.4%. In 2013, that rate was only 3.57%. With each year, the mortgage rate has been increasing. U.S. home buyers might see it at 4.6% or higher by the end of this year, so they need to act now.
If you are a first-time home buyer living in South Florida and you are looking for the mortgage that fits you best, call Ace Mortgage Loan Corporation today. Ace Loan Mortgage Corporation is located in Coral Springs, FL and we can assist you with your home loan no matter what time of day. The weather will not hinder us from assisting our clients.