The real estate business in the Bay Area has come a long way from the past. However, in 2022, the buyers faced an unexpected increase in mortgage rates leading to a difficult time in the real estate business in the area. The increased rate made it hard for some buyers to get credited for a loan and doubtful to invest at such high monthly rates.
However, fast forward to 2024, things have changed a little for the better. While the market remains a problem for buyers, the slight changes and developments have gained hope in investors looking for reputed San Francisco realtors. The housing market in the Bay Area will slow down and change to a more affordable one for buyers.
Here are the predictions for the real estate market in the Bay Area in 2024.
Bay Area Housing Market Changes
The area is witnessing an increase in its inventory scene. However, due to this, the marketing scenario for the buyers will be different from the traditional one that has been followed for years. Therefore, there are going to be some changes that will bring out new rules and regulations.
Due to the low inventory levels, the number of homes available for investors does not align as predicted. But despite the supply shortage, it is expected to see a new era of the housing scene in the Bay Area which will eventually slow down the price growth and help buyers settle for a more affordable environment than before.
Inventory: What Is Happening?
In most places, the real estate business has been facing the same change in market values. There are many houses to sell and buyers to buy; however, the increase in mortgage rates has made people step back and think about their decision before finalizing one.
This trend is likely to continue, but it will only put the people who cannot afford to pay these mortgage rates in a difficult situation and not fulfill their dream of owning a home. On the other hand, the decrease in these prices in the future will certainly assure the buyers to search for an investment without much doubt, giving them a consistent and stable market strategy.
As a result, the increase in buyers will raise the demand for the housing market again. It will also further allow the owners to list their homes that they were not thinking of selling due to favorable mortgage rates in the past. Many sellers doubted selling the homes and getting an equal outcome with a similar home but increased monthly payments.
All of these doubts and problems can be solved if there is a decrease in the current rates, which will lead to a more selection of homes for the people, along with the arrival of inventory in 2022.
Mortgage Rates In 2024
Many in the mortgage industry informed that even though there won’t be a sudden decline in mortgage prices, there is a chance that it will eventually decrease in 2024. The rates have fallen slightly by November 2022, but not much has changed. There will be significant changes in the 15-year and 30-year fixed rates.
This sums up that by the end of 2024, there will be a huge decline in the current mortgage rates, but it will not go to the lowest prices seen in 2021 and early 2022. The thing about mortgage rates is that it is unpredictable. The graph can easily go down or up in the coming years and depends on the overall economic levels of the state.
Housing Prices
The people willing to buy before have taken a step back and are considering making an offer due to the high mortgage rates. This has instantly decreased the demand in the housing market in the San Francisco area.
Some sellers are ready to negotiate and lower the price to sell their homes and move out. This is also a result because of the increase in the inventory since 2022. The coming months will have the demand decreasing and the increasing number of homes for sale, eventually making the sellers choose a settling price without any other choice.
If the mortgage prices continue this way, the demand for housing will also remain down and not increase any day, except when the inventory increases and the prices go down later in the year.
Can Buyers Get Affordable Homes?
Contemporary real estate instruments, such as commission rebates, enable homebuyers to save thousands of dollars throughout the home-buying process. Therefore, buyers can still get houses at affordable prices by using these types of tools to look for more options and buy the house they like the most.
This is a way through which the buyers can try their best to afford their dream home and increase the demand for purchasing again. In addition, the extra cash can help with additional renovations or any other emergency costs. And lastly, it will give the buyers confidence in making an offer.
Buying and selling houses also depends on personal and individual interests. Therefore even if there is a difference in housing prices, those who wish to buy a certain house will try to afford it. There will still be buyers ready to buy houses at the increased prices, but the overall demand for buyers will be less when compared to previous years.
Conclusion
After the pandemic, the economic levels of some places have changed, and this has affected the housing market. As a result, the price of houses increased, and with high mortgage rates and monthly payments, it is hard for people to buy houses like before.
In 2022, with the inventory, the prices were still high, which eventually decreased buyers’ demand in the Bay Area.
However, with the decrease in housing prices in the future, the demand for buyers will increase, and there will be more buyers and sellers from the Bay Area. This will make it easy for people to settle into their dream houses.
