The U.S. economy is expected to fare well in 2025, according to economists from across the spectrum, with few headwinds anticipated. However, forecasters are predicting only small gains in the real estate market, as interest rates remain stubbornly in +6% territory and inventory continues to show only modest improvement.
Investment firms Goldman Sachs and Charles Schwab are particularly optimistic about the potential for growth and expansion in the economy in the coming year. predicts GDP growth will reach 2.5% for 2025. 鈥淭he US economy is in a good place,鈥� said David Mericle, chief U.S. economist in GSR. 鈥淩ecession fears have diminished, inflation is trending back toward 2%, and the labor market has rebalanced but remains strong.鈥�
Internationally, envisions consistent 3% growth across the board in 2025, despite trade war concerns emanating from the threat of increased tariffs.
鈥淣ot one of the top 45 economies in the world are expected to be in recession next year,鈥� said Jeffrey Kleintop, Managing Director, Chief Global Investment Strategist in a Dec. 2 release. 鈥淢ost are expected to grow faster in 2025, including Europe, Japan, Canada, and the U.K., according to the latest outlook from the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), International Monetary Fund (IMF), and the consensus of economist forecasts tracked by Bloomberg.鈥�
While all of this should point to an improving housing market, there are still plenty of headwinds for consumers, including the elevated cost of living in general, as well as a tight housing market that has kept prices from moderating despite dwindling sales over the past year. That is not expected to change heading into 2025.
Recent data indicators, including resilient employment and cooling inflation, point to a stronger economic foundation, especially if interest rates moderate in 2025.
The Consumer Price Index rose 2.6% through October, up from 2.4% in the September data, but moderate compared to the peak of 9.1%. Employment has been surprisingly resilient with an unexpected jump in jobs numbers in September after a sluggish summer. And although jobs bottomed out in October due to two hurricanes and several significant labor strikes, the economy quickly rebounded by adding a healthy 227,000 jobs in November.
The continued strength of the economy has allayed some consumer fears, opening the door to the potential for increasing home sales in 2025.
Consumer Confidence
Although inflation has diminished consistently through 2024, persistent elevated prices from two years of high inflation continued to contribute to consumer frustration. As job growth lagged over the summer, consumers became increasingly pessimistic, but according to , that tide is beginning to turn.
鈥淐onsumer confidence continued to improve in November and reached the top of the range that has prevailed over the past two years,鈥� said Dana M. Peterson, Chief Economist at The Conference Board. 鈥淣ovember鈥檚 increase was driven by more positive consumer assessments of the present situation, particularly regarding the labor market. Compared to October, consumers were also substantially more optimistic about future job availability, which reached its highest level in almost three years.鈥�
The question foremost in the minds of real estate professionals is will all of this good news result in a stronger real estate market in 2025.
Interest rates hold the key to 2025 housing market
On Sept. 18, Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell announced a widely expected .5% point rate cut, saying it reflected the agency鈥檚 鈥済rowing confidence that, with an appropriate recalibration of our policy stance, strength in the labor market can be maintained in a context of moderate growth and inflation moving sustainably down to 2%.鈥�
More significantly, Powell noted that FOMC participants at the meeting prepared individual assessments of an appropriate path for the federal funds rate, determining that if the economy evolves as expected, the appropriate level of the federal funds rate would be 4.4% at the end of this year and 3.4% at the end of 2025.
The FOMC followed up with a 0.25% rate cut in November. However, during the December meeting, policymakers signaled a more restrained outlook for future rate cuts, reflecting concerns about inflation and broader economic conditions. The updated “dot plot” now indicates expectations for only two quarter-point cuts in 2025, marking a slower pace of monetary easing than previously anticipated.
Despite the Fed’s actions, mortgage rates have remained elevated, hovering around 6.5% through the final quarter of the year. This persistence in higher rates has further tempered expectations for the housing market.
In its , Freddie Mac noted that while the U.S. economy remained resilient with strong Q3 growth, unexpected volatility in mortgage rates has weighed on housing and mortgage activity.
鈥淎s we get into 2025, we anticipate that rates will gradually decline throughout the year,鈥� the GSE reported. 鈥淭he expected decline in mortgage rates in 2025 should loosen some of the rate lock-in effect for existing homeowners, offering more inventory in the market.鈥�
However, in its November Spotlight Report, Freddie Mac noted that the housing market continues to be plagued by a housing shortfall, which has persisted for years.
鈥淗ousing affordability remains one of the top economic issues facing American households,鈥� the GSE noted. 鈥淏oth homeowners and renters have seen the cost of housing increase faster than other consumer prices, putting a significant strain on household budgets. As we have documented in several previous research notes, the root cause of decreased housing affordability is the fact that housing supply has not increased enough to match demand. Inadequate housing supply leads homeowners and renters to bid up the sale price and rent of available housing, which puts a squeeze on affordability.鈥�
Fannie Mae has also revised its home sales projections for 2025, saying they are expected to rise by only 4% next year. According to the from the Fannie Mae (FNMA/OTCQB) Economic and Strategic Research (ESR) Group. the downward revision to the existing home sales outlook, which was previously forecast to rise 11% in 2025, is the result of significant upward movement in mortgage rates.
鈥淲hereas previously the ESR Group had expected mortgage rates to dip below 6% in early 2025, the revised forecast now shows mortgage rates ending 2025 at 6.3% and remaining above 6% through 2026,鈥� the report noted. 鈥淭he ESR Group does expect a significant improvement in existing home sales of around 17% in its inaugural 2026 forecast, as affordability conditions improve, the lock-in effect weakens, and pent-up demand to move materializes. Furthermore, the ESR Group continues to expect new home sales to improve on already-robust levels in both 2025 and 2026, as homebuilders continue to offer buyers incentives to move existing inventories.鈥�
A changing market
For real estate agents, the volatility of the 2024 real estate market was compounded by the National Association of Realtors (NAR) settlement, which brought significant changes to real estate practices. While these changes led many part-time agents to exit the profession, full-time professionals have quickly adapted and are ready to move forward under the new system.
In the mortgage arena, lenders have encouraged their loan officers to become far more consultative with their clients to ensure borrowers have the tools and knowledge to make the best decisions about the range of home they can afford and to be prepared to increase their downpayment to make their monthly payments more affordable.
Affordability and availability are going to be the keynote for a real estate comeback in communities across the U.S. in 2025 due to high interest rates and the persistent escalation of home prices. Migration trends may shift from states impacted by environmental disasters or housing markets that are overpriced to areas that boast affordability, availability and with fewer downsides such as high taxes and climate impact.
Real estate professionals should stay vigilant and adapt to these evolving trends within their regions, positioning themselves to better navigate market challenges and seize emerging opportunities in 2025 and beyond.
The buzz is in the air with more questions than answers.
FinCEN published its Final Anti-Money Laundering Regulations for Residential Real Estate Transfers on August 28, 2024 (鈥淔inal Rule鈥�), throwing the entire real estate industry into a state of high anxiety. What does it all mean? How do we meet its requirements? Will the expense of compliance be a financial drain 鈥� or even put us out of business? Title agents 鈥� who most often also fill the role of settlement or closing agents and would be the first elected reporter under the Final Rule 鈥� have been asking themselves these questions. While law firms and industry associations, as well as news outlets, have discussed the black letter text requirements set out in the , no one knows exactly how this is going to play out. Of course, our biggest fear is always the great and looming unknown.
So, what can we say and do to allay those fears? First of all, the Final Rule does not become effective until December 1, 2025. This gives the industry time to become prepared and adapt to the new requirements. Secondly, ALTA has stated in its , that it 鈥渨ill develop and provide several education and training opportunities to prepare the industry for the rule鈥檚 requirements.鈥�
Moving forward to operationalize the Final Rule, FinCEN released the unpublished version of its on November 12, 2024 with the formal published version to follow; thereafter the collection form is open for a 60 day comment period. Additionally, FinCEN agreed to provide as it goes through implementation. If saying 鈥渉elp will be on the way鈥� doesn鈥檛 quite do it for you, then think about the things that you can do now 鈥� including strategic planning 鈥� to take control, empower, educate and prepare yourself.
What kind of strategic planning are we talking about? Here are a few ideas:
Consider setting up a workflow to help you identify reportable transactions and direct the information, documents and forms to the appropriate personnel for processing the required report; including providing a secure intake portal to accept and store documents and forms containing non-public personal information
This would include identifying any order regarding a purchase of residential real property by an entity or trust/trustee for cash (without a traditional lender that has a required AML program and who must file SARS) as the term 鈥渞esidential real property鈥� is defined:
1-4 family occupancy residential units (e.g. a stand-alone, such as a single-family residence or townhouse; or even a unit within a multi-unit complex, such as a condo or shares in a coop; or even a residential unit in a mixed use building; as well as entire buildings designed for occupancy by one to four families)
Vacant land upon which the purchasing entity or trust/trustee intends to build a structure that is designed principally for occupancy by 1-4 families building such a residential real property
So, if you have an internal IT team or outsource your IT needs with a particular vendor, having a conversation with them now about how they can help you accomplish the work discussed above would not be premature.
Consider the Final Report鈥檚 required information, identifying what you already have and what you need to obtain from other sources 鈥� i.e. from the bank, from the purchaser鈥檚 representative, the seller or seller鈥檚 representative, and from the signer for the purchaser.
The Final Rule requires bank account information for the bank from which the source of funds originated. A title agent does not typically get that information on the wire confirmation or receipt that it receives from its own bank when an incoming wire or certified check is received or deposited. However, you can talk to your bank manager and inquire if the bank would be willing to provide you with that additional information on the documentation that it sends to you.
While the Final Rule only requires retention of the Purchaser鈥檚 Certification of Beneficial Ownership Information (and of any Designation Agreement that you may enter into), it is still both important and smart to retain all of the data in writing that is provided to you by others. If a question regarding your compliance should ever arise, then you would have documented evidence to show what you relied upon. This would apply to even an analysis of whether or not you have a reportable transaction under the Final Rule. For example, if the transaction is a purchase of vacant land, you may want to have the buyer鈥檚 representative state its future intent for the land in writing (because if it doesn鈥檛 intend to build a structure that is designed principally for occupancy by 1-4 families, then you don鈥檛 have a reportable transaction under the Final Rule).
Consider the cost of compliance with the Final Rule and how you can make your process be the most efficient and effective in terms of the expense 鈥� and perhaps even recoup some of the expense depending upon what your state law and regulator allow.
The biggest cost driver is going to be the administrative personnel鈥檚 time for those who will be working on collecting the data and reporting it. Here are some tips that may help:
Have two well-trained staff members whose education, experience, workload and market rate are appropriate for the time and tasks required to comply with the Final Rule. In case one staff member is unavailable to do the reporting, you will have ready coverage by having a backup person. Remember that there is a due date for compliance 鈥� which is the later of either:
(i) the final day of the month following the month in which the date of closing occurred; or
(ii) 30 calendar days after the date of closing.
In other words, if November 1st is the closing date, then December 31st would be the last day for submitting a timely report to FinCEN.
If you have very few transactions that would be subject to reporting under the Final Rule, perhaps it does not make sense for you to have your own staff members trained to take on the task. In that event, you may want to investigate your options for designating another reporter as identified in the Final Rule. In this event, you would want to do your due diligence and vetting in advance of December 1, 2025. Be aware that if you see a vendor advertising to provide this service, unless it is identified as an optional designated reporter within the Final Rule, it cannot relieve you of your reporting responsibilities.
This can鈥檛 be stressed enough: collect the data from the respective parties or people before the closing date. Our experience with FinCEN鈥檚 Geographic Targeting Orders has shown that if you wait until after closing, then you will be wasting a lot of time (and money) chasing after the needed information.
If you have repeat entity or trust customers who typically purchase residential real estate for cash, educate them in advance of the effective date of the Final Rule regarding what to expect. This may help your customers to have their information ready for data collection while at the same time building their trusted relationship with you. The Final Rule does not require confidentiality as to its contents.
Since the Final Rule does not discuss recoupment of cost, there is no federal prohibition against it. Your state laws and regulators will be the ones who ultimately determine what kind of recoupment, if any, is allowed for the expense you will incur to comply with the Final Rule. Start having conversations with your state land title association early, as they are your advocates and may be able to provide you with guidance from your state regulators.
Stay abreast of developments (e.g. any amendments to the Final Rule or FinCEN FAQs) by subscribing to (sent to you via email or text messages). Also, keep an eye out for ALTA鈥檚 publications and resources as they become available.
Read informative articles from trusted sources. One such recent article that is worthy of mention is , published September 9, 2024.
Review the which has 111 distinct fields; get familiar with the form and write down your questions for future discussion.
LONGMONT, CO鈥�(October 24, 2024) 海角吃瓜黑料mpany and affiliate (鈥満＝浅怨虾诹镶��) announced today that it has entered into a definitive agreement to be acquired by Dream Finders Homes, Inc. (鈥淒FH鈥�) (NYSE: DFH).
Presidio Investors (鈥淧I鈥�) acquired 海角吃瓜黑料 in 2018 and has been instrumental in helping the company establish robust internal processes, expand geographic reach, improve operational efficiency, and drive technology innovation. In 2023, 海角吃瓜黑料 created a leading fraud detection tool designed specifically to streamline the flow of a real estate transaction. This unique solution is fully customizable for title agencies and has robust AI-enabled fraud prevention capabilities. Meredith Moss, Chairperson of the Board of Directors, said, “海角吃瓜黑料 has continued to grow market share through top-tier service to title agents, backed by an innovative software platform and cutting-edge application of AI. Dream Finders鈥� announcement recognizes the value created by 海角吃瓜黑料’s distinctive approach, which prioritizes both relationships and technology.”
Chris Puscasiu, Managing Partner of Presidio, said, “It has been an exciting six-year journey to see 海角吃瓜黑料 dramatically increase its footprint and develop tools to scale and to assist its customers. Despite the uncertainty during the pandemic and the recent housing market challenges, the Company’s continued investment in growth enabled it to be recognized as an innovation leader in its space, as this transaction illustrates. “
The relationships developed over almost 20 years with independent title agents have facilitated this exciting transaction. David Sinclair, President & CEO of 海角吃瓜黑料, said, 鈥淲e are thrilled to become part of the Dream Finders ecosystem and envision an exciting future together. The collaboration of an innovative builder, strong title agency, and the 海角吃瓜黑料 underwriting team will promote our long-term success and growth into a national real estate partner.鈥�
The closing of this transaction is subject to regulatory approvals.
Please review the by Dream Finders Homes.
About 海角吃瓜黑料mpany
海角吃瓜黑料, based in Longmont, Colorado, is a title insurance underwriter with more than 700 independent agents in 32 states and the District of Columbia. 海角吃瓜黑料 is focused exclusively on the success of independent agents, as the largest underwriter in the country with no direct or affiliated operations.
Understanding the impact of co-ownership on property is crucial for avoiding costly mistakes in real estate transactions. Major life events 鈥� such as marriage, divorce, or inheritance 鈥� can all significantly affect title and how it鈥檚 conveyed. To ensure the right parties are involved and proper procedures are followed, it鈥檚 important to grasp the key distinctions between ownership types that come into play when life changes and property conveyance intersect.
Title to real property may be held by sole individuals or entities, termed as sole ownership, or by two or more parties, termed as joint ownership. How joint owners hold title may impact how they convey title when they elect to sell the property, who can convey title if a co-owner passes away, or how property is treated if there is a dissolution of marriage. Depending on your state, the implications in each situation may determine how documents are prepared. A title company may ask for more information to have title conveyed by the appropriate grantor(s) and to also have title held by the grantee(s) pursuant to their wishes based on the permitted state laws.
Understanding the terminology is helpful when considering who may need to execute a conveyance deed or execute a mortgage/deed of trust, or how joint owners may want to take title to real property.
SOLE OWNERSHIP
Sole Ownership is just as it sounds, meaning that one person or entity owns the real property and has complete control over it.
JOINT OWNERSHIP
Tenants in Common is used when co-owners can take equal or unequal shares in the property. See . Each co-owner can do what they wish with their share, but only as to their share. For example, a person with a 25% ownership interest in the property can convey their 25% interest (or less) to another person. If a co-owner passes away, their interest will pass to their estate. In this case, the heir or beneficiary of the decedent鈥檚 estate will become a tenant in common with the other owners. If the deed is silent to how the co-owners hold title, typically this joint ownership type is viewed to have been created.
Joint Tenancy with the Right of Survivorship allows co-owners to hold title jointly and equally when the four unities are present. These unities are unity of time, unity of title, unity of interest, and unity of possession. See . If the four unities are broken, then the co-ownership typically changes to a tenants in common. In states that recognizes Joint Tenancy with the Right of Survivorship, upon the death of one of the owners, that ownership is automatically transferred to the remaining surviving owner or owners.
Tenancy by the Entireties is a co-ownership only available for a married couple. In this joint ownership, each spouse owns the entire estate and on the death of one spouse, the real property remains the sole ownership of the surviving spouse. In states that recognize this joint ownership, the deed may only show that they are a married couple (i.e., husband and wife) without any particular wording. However, if the deed does not identify that they are a married couple may cause the real property to be held as tenants in common. Currently there are 25 states that recognize this joint ownership.
Community Property is property owned in common by married couples, or either, during marriage, when not acquired as their separate property. See . Each person has an undivided one-half interest in the property by reason of their marital status. Property that was acquired before the marriage, however, typically remains as their separate property. There are also cases in which certain property that is acquired during the marriage and is placed only in the name of one spouse, may be that spouse鈥檚 sole and separate property. In the latter, to assist with making it clear, the other spouse may typically execute a written consent and relinquish title, interest and any rights by executing a disclaimer deed and have the instrument recorded in the county land records. There are currently nine (9) states that are community property states: Arizona, California, Idaho, Louisiana, Nevada, New Mexico, Texas, Washington, and Wisconsin. Take a look at each state鈥檚 statutes as to how community property is treated in the state.
Let鈥檚 look at a few examples of these joint ownerships in action.
Scenario 1
The parties live in a state that recognizes Tenancy by the Entireties. Jake Smith and Vivian Smith acquired title as husband and wife. They are now selling the property, and the prepared deed may read as follows:
Jake Smith and Vivian Smith, husband and wife, as Grantors, to Monica Walker, a single person and Christopher Walker, a single person, as Joint Tenants with Right of Survivorship, as Grantees.
In this case, presuming both are still alive and are still married to each other, then to convey title, the grantors, Jake Smith and Vivian Smith, should execute the deed conveying title to Monica Walker and Christopher Walker.
As for the grantees, you may have noticed that the marital status also shows for each grantee (i.e., in this case, 鈥渁 single person鈥�) and how they are to hold title under their joint ownership is specifically identified (i.e., 鈥淛oint Tenants with Right of Survivorship鈥�).
Scenario 2
Let鈥檚 use the same parties but change the situation slightly regarding the grantors. In this case, Jake Smith and Vivian Smith previously took title to the real property without any reference to their marital status. Now they are selling the property, and the conveyance deed was prepared as follows:
Jake Smith and Vivian Smith, as Grantors, to Monica Walker, a single person and Christopher Walker, a single person, as Joint Tenants with Right of Survivorship, as Grantees.
In most states, in this situation, the grantors are found to hold title as Tenants in Common. As you may recall, if prior to the conveyance Jake Smith passed away, for example, then his interest would go to his heirs or beneficiaries of his estate, depending on the probate laws of the state.
Also, in this situation, we are missing the grantor鈥檚 marital status. As a best practice, the parties鈥� marital status should be reflected on the deed when they acquired title and when they convey title. The purpose of this is so that any marital interest in the property may be addressed. Thus, it may be required that the spouse of the grantor also executes the deed to convey their marital interest in the property to the grantees, depending on your state.
Scenario 3
In this last scenario, what happens if Jake Smith and Vivian Smith, as husband and wife, acquired title but while in title, their marriage is dissolved? Jake Smith now says he wants to sell the property.
In this situation, a complete copy of the final judgment to dissolve their marriage should be obtained from the family court records. Also, as a best practice, the final judgment should be recorded in the county land records. Recording of the final judgment provides notice that the joint ownership was severed and how the property was distributed by the court. It is important to thoroughly read the final judgment regarding who was awarded the real property. For example, the court may order that both parties will continue to hold title, which means they most likely are holding as tenants in common. Alternatively, the court may have ordered one party to execute a deed to convey title to the other party. In the claims department, on occasion, we do find that the court鈥檚 instruction to execute, and record, a deed was not completed. This may lead to extra legwork in either having to find the other party for a deed to the other spouse and to have it recorded in the county land records, or to go back to the court for it to enter an order declaring the title is in the spouse and record the new order in the county land records.
CONCLUSION
With everyday life changes, a person may take title as a single person but may be married when they are ready to convey title, for example. From sole ownership to joint ownership, and from marital property to non-marital property, understanding terminology and gathering accurate information to uncover how parties hold title and the proper parties needed to convey title, these all play an important role in real property ownership.
RESOURCES:
Community Property. The Law Dictionary,
Differences between Joint Tenants with Survivorship and Tenants in Common. Findlaw,
Difference between Joint Tenancy and Tenancy in Common. The Law Dictionary,
This blog contains general information only, not intended to be relied upon as, nor a substitute for, specific professional advice. We accept no responsibility for loss occasioned to any purpose acting on or refraining from action as a result of any material on this blog.
The economy remains on track as we head into the closing months of 2024, with inflation subsiding under the Federal Reserve鈥檚 tight management and employment remaining surprisingly resilient, though softening in recent months.
On the real estate front, high interest rates and low inventory have stymied the industry, with new single-family home sales plunging 11.3% in May and existing sales falling to an annualized rate of 3.89 million in June, a two-month period that normally sees accelerated buying trends.
The hoped-for rate cuts by the Federal Reserve that might have given the market a boost in the coming months have not materialized, with Treasury Secretary Jerome Powell announcing on July 31 that the federal funds rate would stay put at 5.25-5.5% for the near term, while holding out hope that there may be some downward movement before years鈥� end.
鈥淔OMC participants wrote down their individual assessments of an appropriate path for the federal funds rate, based on what each participant judges to be the most likely scenario going forward,鈥� Powell said in his report. 鈥淚f the economy evolves as expected, the median participant projects that the appropriate level of the federal funds rate will be 5.1% at the end of this year, 4.1% at the end of 2025, and 3.1% at the end of 2026. But these projections are not a Committee plan or any kind of a decision.鈥�
In his comments, Powell acknowledged that while the Fed is not yet confident enough to pull back from their efforts to control inflation, reducing policy restraint too late or too little could have an undue negative impact on economic activity and employment. That fear seemed to come to fruition when the July jobs report came in weaker than expected, sending Wall Street into a tailspin on August 2nd as fears of recession escalated in the financial community. However, markets have largely recovered since that drop.
In a reaction to the U.S. Commerce Department report on Q2 GDP, MBA SVP and Chief Economist Mike Fratantoni acknowledged several components in the report indicating a potential slowdown for the economy but also pointed to positive signs in the recent inflation data that he hoped 鈥渨ould provide enough confidence for the Federal Reserve to cut rates in September.鈥�
While that remains to be seen, consumer confidence, interest rates, home sales, and new home construction remain in limbo, subduing hopes for any substantial real estate boost this year.
Consumer confidence shows signs of improvement
Dana M. Peterson, Chief Economist at The Conference Board, said that consumer confidence increased in July but remained in a narrow range that has prevailed over the past two years. 鈥淓ven though consumers remain relatively positive about the labor market, they still appear to be concerned about rising prices and interest rates, and uncertainty about the future; things that may not improve until next year,鈥� she said.
Interest rates staying put
It remains to be seen if a slowing economy will kickstart a movement towards lowering fed funds rates in the near term, but interest rates have remained in the sub-7% range this summer after reaching 8.5% in October 2023. According to the Freddie Mac economists鈥� July outlook, interest rates are expected to stay above 6.5% through the end of the year. Fannie Mae is also forecasting interest rates to remain at 6.8% through the end of the year, falling back only slightly to 6.4% in 2025, leaving little hope for the recovery that was so optimistically anticipated at the outset of the year.
Home price growth could pull back
According to the July 2024 commentary from the Fannie Mae Economic and Strategic Research (ESR) Group, home price growth in the second quarter was stronger than previously anticipated but will likely moderate soon, closing 2024 and 2025 at annual rates of 6.1% and 3.0%, respectively. The CoreLogic HPI Forecast concurs, indicating in its July report that home prices are expected to rise only 3% on a year-over-year basis from May 2024 to May 2025.
New home sales soften, existing home sales improve slightly
According to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and the U.S. Census Bureau, sales of newly built, single-family homes in June fell 0.6% to a 617,000 seasonally adjusted annual rate from a slight upwardly revised reading in May. The pace of new home sales is down 7.4% from a year earlier.
Jing Fu, NAHB director of forecasting and analysis, reported in July that new home inventory in June remained elevated at a 9.3 months鈥� supply.
鈥淎t the current building pace, there is still a long-run need for more construction because existing inventory remains relatively low,鈥� he said. 鈥淒ue to a lack of resale homes for sale, the combined inventory for new and existing single-family homes remains lean at a 4.7 months鈥� supply, according to NAHB estimates.鈥�
After a lackluster May and June, pending home sales rose 4.8% in June, according to the National Association of Realtors, but the numbers remain low compared to past years.
Broader outlook murky
Across the board, economic and housing forecasts remain tentative and conservative, as economists keep an eye on a host of uncertain elements, including the volatility of the global economy, the Federal Reserve鈥檚 tight fiscal policy, a jittery stock market, and an era of consumer pessimism. However, should the Federal Reserve begin interest rate cuts in September as hoped for, many of these issues could ease considerably, opening the door for a more promising final quarter.
