The Top Real Estate Trends of 2024

As we look forward to the spring market, it’s important to understand the dynamics of the real estate landscape. Whether you’re buying, selling, investing, or keeping an eye on the market, keeping up with the current trends is one way to have a competitive edge.

We interviewed our Chairman & CEO of HUNT Real Estate, Peter Hunt, about his predictions for the housing market this year. Read on to see the 2024 real estate trends affecting buyers and sellers this year.

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Endless Channels Means More Challenges for Buyers and Sellers

Residential and commercial real estate marketing continues to move to various social media platforms and third-party websites like Zillow, Realtor.com, Loopnet, and CoStar. The volume of channels available can make it more difficult for buyers and sellers to find the right properties and look in the right places for their needs.

To combat this, more and more professionals are leaning into traditional means of marketing to reach you and others looking to buy or sell this year. This includes open houses, neighborhood specialization, canvassing and networking via direct mail, and joint venture marketing with other service providers, such as mortgage, title and insurance companies.

Home Sales May Be Down but Are Expected To Rise

In my opinion, Fannie Mae offers the most comprehensive studies in this industry. Each month, they publish data on the current market and even project forward. Their recent January 19 publication shows sales nationwide of existing homes (single-family, condos/co-ops) to be down 18.3% in 2023 from 2022. Still, it predicts it will rise slightly by 3.1% in 2024 and then jump 13.7% in 2025.

Additionally, prices are predicted to rise only 3.2% in 2024 and flatten out (up just 0.3%) in 2025.  These predictions roughly parallel the interest reductions (which tend to spur sales) from the actual average rate for a 30-fixed rate mortgage in 2023 (6.8%) to 6.1% in 2024 and 5.6% in 2025.

The relationship between existing home sales and interest rates is inversely proportional. Our local markets in Upstate New York and New England tend to have lower highs and higher lows in terms of actual sales numbers and price fluctuations.

Buy Profilers Remain Similar to 2023

Housing market predictions say 2024 buyer profiles will be roughly similar to 2023. The bulk of the market will be “must sell” and “must buy” situations. 

New household formations, empty nesters scaling down, and those relocating for various purposes will make up a significant portion of the buyer population. This has remained consistent for the past two years.

Mortgage Rates Have Dipped but Are Constantly Changing

Contrary to popular belief, the Fed’s actions have a huge influence (although not the most immediate impact) on mortgage interest rates. The key indicator here is the yield on the 10-year treasury bill. The “spread” between the daily rate on the 10-year will trend 2.5% to 3% lower than the daily 30-year fixed rate for mortgages.

Get an idea of the direction of mortgage rates by tuning into the financial news to watch the yield. Mortgage rates dipped enough to spur the market between mid-October and December of last year (down to around 3.5% yield) but are now up again to about 4.1%.  This is constantly changing.  Keeping an eye on the current financial news is how buyers and sellers can get an indication of mortgage rates and real estate activity.

2024 Is the Time To Buy a Home if the Property and Price Are Right
Truthfully, buyers should have purchased a home in 2023, 2022, or even 2021. Why? Because we haven’t seen a price decline in 12 years or more. Plus, every house is unique, and one you may be admiring right now might become available — and then never be available again. If you’ve been admiring a particular property, there’s no guarantee of its availability unless you’ve sealed the deal.

Buying a home is an emotional experience. If you connect emotionally with a property and can afford to buy it, that’s enough for you to purchase a home in 2024. If you are a first-timer, get into the market and stay in until you get a house. I recommend working with a mortgage consultant and sales professional with real expertise. Historically, this has been the best deal — a trend, you could say, that isn’t going away anytime soon.

While housing market trends may come and go, it’s necessary to stay in the loop and be knowledgeable and prepared when you’re in the market, whether you’re buying or selling. Knowing how to find your audience or the properties you’re looking for will be key in 2024. While existing home sales may go down this year, we can expect to see them rise in 2025. People of all backgrounds will continue to buy and sell homes, with those least affected by economic conditions continuing to dominate the high end of the market. Mortgage rates are constantly changing – when it comes to purchasing a home in 2024, if you find the right house for the right price, it’s the right time to buy.

When you work with real estate and mortgage professionals like those at HUNT Real Estate and HUNT Mortgage, you get a partner with market expertise who keeps up with the latest trends and is an invaluable resource for the spring market and beyond.

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Contact us to connect with a HUNT Mortgage consultant ready to help you on your home journey.