Mortgage loan rates are dropping but financial performance follows a concerning downward trend by the amount of real estate sales and general interest on the buyers’ side. Data from several analytics firms also demonstrates that the growth of housing prices in Florida was the greatest nationwide, while this state’s performance was among the worst last month.
Redfin Real Estate Data Center discovered that among the 50 most densely populated US megalopolises, sales dropped the most in Las Vegas (-64%), Austin (-58.2%), Phoenix (-57%), Jacksonville (-57%), and Sacramento (-54%) compared to last year, as of November 20, 2022.
Florida is also at the top of the nationwide rating by the number of overdue mortgage payments: last month, over 19,000 home loans were overdue, which increased the level of the state’s arrears to 3.42%. This is one of the ways Hurricane Ian affected the local real estate market.
However, there is some good news too. Florida is still the leader by year-on-year house price growth. Eight out of ten largest US markets are in this state. Property in Naples became 42.2% more expensive compared to last year, which is the highest nationwide. It is followed by Bradenton (31.2%), Boca Raton (27.7%), and Clearwater (24%). Lehigh Acres, Palm Bay, Miami, and Pompano Beach are another four largest markets. Tulsa (Oklahoma) is the 5th in the national ranking and Fayetteville (North Carolina) is the 10th; these are the only two cities outside Florida that made it to the country’s top ten.
However, some US analysts believe that the currently growing prices are going to decline. Axios (a news website) reports that an economic analyst forecasts a crash of US house prices, while the Goldman Sachs investment bank is expecting a decline of approximately 4%. Other economic experts have declared that the low unemployment level will contain mortgage defaults, while the low supply in the real estate market will also deter a decline.