Will it be a good year for real estate?

"Will it be a good year for real estate?"   

That’s the most common question I received in January. 

The answer changes day to day based on interest rates, inflation, unemployment and so many other factors, but so far has been positive – we should have a good year in real estate.  By that I mean that more homes will sell and prices will continue to go up.   

We are expected to have at least slightly lower rates start to creep in by March and if rates can remain in the 6’s, then we should experience more buyer confidence, as the market adjusts expectations to the current rate levels. And many of those buyers will need to sell their homes and can move forward with confidence that they have not lost value in their homestead.  

Despite the lower volume of buyers currently in the market, the lower inventory levels have kept prices up.  I am expecting to see a balanced amount of buyers and sellers entering the market this year, which should mean more homes for buyers to compare, balanced by fairly fast selling cycles and steadily increasing prices due to buyer competition.  

We are still inundated with war, elections, inflation and don’t forget pestilence, but even when times are uncertain, people still invest in real estate.  Yeah!