REAL ESTATE HOME PRICES Buying or Selling a Home in 2015? Here’s What You Need to Know By Carla Fried      After a boom, a bust, and a bounce, housing finally gets back to “normal.” Housing should be a drama-free zone in 2015. “After the boom, the bust, and the recovery bounce, we are transitioning to a calmer market driven by fundamentals,” says Jed Kolko, chief economist at Trulia. Even though the econ­omy is growing and mortgage rates will remain low—the 30-year fixed isn’t likely to pass 5%—bubbly gains in housing are unlikely. Household income has barely budged since the housing market bottomed in late 2011, while home prices are already about 20% higher on average. Plus, with cautious lenders requiring hefty down payments and low debt/income ratios, it’s not as if buyers have the capacity to push prices sharply up. All that figured in, CoreLogic forecasts a 4.4% rise in the national median home price. “That’s healthy and sustainable,” says chief economist Mark Fleming. Here’s what to do if you’re thinking about buying or selling in 2015. Sellers, forget bidding wars. In most markets you still have leverage, but less than you did. In the summer of 2013 about 20% of homes were selling at a premium to original list; this fall, 11% are, the National Association of Realtors reported. The takeaway: “You have to price your house right,” says Redfin chief economist Nela Richardson. ­Review recent comps and list within 5% to allow for counteroffers. Buyers, save interest. While the 30-year fixed is not expected to hit 5% until later in the year, a winter move will likely nab the lowest rates. Meanwhile, the 15-year mortgage, now at 3.3%, should stay under 4% for most of 2015—and can be a good call if you’re looking to pay off the house before retirement. Owners, renovate. Especially if you have a low-rate mortgage, “it can be a lot cheaper to remodel to age in place than move,” says Kermit Baker, director of the Remodeling Futures Program at Harvard’s Joint Center for Housing Studies. Rates on home-equity loans and lines of credit are still “in shouting distance of record lows,” says Keith Gum­binger of mortgage data service HSH.com. While loans are pricier than HELOCs—possibly 6.5% vs. 5.5% by year’s end—the fixed-rate HEL can be a safer bet in a rising rate climate.  ...

Why 2015 Might Be the Year You Finally Sell Your House      Martin Barraud/Getty Images Home price gains are slowing, credit is thawing, and more first-time buyers may be hitting the real estate market in 2015. Better balance in the housing sector is “in” next year, as far as trends go. That’s likely to put buyers and sellers on a more even footing. Some prospective sellers sound especially bullish on housing. In a recent Trulia survey, the biggest chunk of consumers, 36%, said they expect next year to be much or a little better than 2014 for selling a home. To be sure, like politics, all real estate is local. Some sellers have stayed on the sidelines in recent years, investing in improvements amid a dearth of buyers. For others, low inventory and rising home prices meant a bidding-war bonanza. The landscape next year’s sellers are likely to encounter depends a lot on where they live. But here are a few broad trends to bear in mind. Bringing Back Buyers Mortgage credit is becoming more available as lenders scale back requirements. The average FICO score on a conventional purchase loan in October was 754, according to Ellie Mae. That’s a five-point drop from last year’s average. (You can check your credit scores for free on Credit.com to see where you stand.) Tough credit and underwriting requirements have been a huge hurdle for many would-be buyers. So is liquidity, but there’s also good news on that front: Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac recently rolled out a mortgage option that allows for a 3% down payment. These two government-sponsored behemoths purchase about two-thirds of all new mortgages. If conventional lenders get on board, the new low-down-payment option could pull more first-time buyers into the marketplace. During a time of tight credit and stagnant wages, this crucial group of buyers has been all but absent from the housing picture. “If access to credit improves, we could see substantially larger numbers of young buyers in the market,” Jonathan Smoke, chief economist for Realtor.com, noted in his 2015 housing forecast. “However, given a high dependency on financial qualifications, this activity will be skewed to geographic areas with higher affordability, such as the Midwest and South.” Affordability May Be a Concern Lower credit and down-payment thresholds are causes for optimism. But rising home values and mortgage rates will impact affordability, especially in costlier housing markets. Realtor.com’s Smoke expects affordability to decline 5-10% next year. Job and wage growth will play a big role in shaping homebuying activity. Gains in both may offset the price and rate increases likely on the horizon. Sellers in more affordable housing markets, especially those with improving economies, are likely to see more buyers. Home Prices & Inventory Home price...

What Real Estate Trends to Expect in 2015 Experts predict investors will exit the market, clearing the way for traditional buyers and millennials. couple choosing paint swatch for new home Many millennials have held off on buying a home, but experts expect that to change in 2015. By Susan Johnston Dec. 9, 2014 | 9:48 a.m. EST More As housing recovers, prices in many markets across the U.S. have shot up. In fact, RealtyTrac reported that the median sale price of U.S. single-family homes and condos in October had reached its highest level since September 2008. Price appreciation and the lure of foreclosures created a feeding frenzy for real estate investors willing to pay cash and made it harder for traditional buyers to compete. But experts say that 2015 will be marked by a return to normalcy and balance for real estate markets across the country. Stan Humphries, chief economist for Zillow.com, predicts that home value growth will slow to around 3 percent per year instead of the 6 percent seen recently, and that will make real estate less attractive to many investors. “It’s been a tough market for buyers,” he says. “I think it’s going to get easier in 2015. Negotiating power will move back to buyers and away from sellers. It will be a much more balanced market.” (Too many buyers and too little inventory, or the opposite, contribute to an unbalanced market.) Redfin.com’s chief economist Nela Richardson agrees. “It’s been a clear pattern that the investor activity has been shrinking over time,” she says. “Investors like to go in where they can buy low and sell high. Price growth is starting to slow dramatically, so they can’t sell much higher than what they buy. Investment property is less compelling in 2014 going into 2015.” More inventory and less competition from investors means even traditional buyers are becoming “more picky, and they’re willing to let a home go if they don’t think it’s a good fit for them,” Richardson adds. “Buyers are less worried that they’ll miss out on something. Houses are more like buses now. If you miss one, another one will come along.” Whereas buyers might waive contingencies in the recent past to make their offer more attractive to sellers, they’re now more likely to insist on contingencies for financing and inspections. That said, foreign investors may still find high-end American real estate appealing because of economic turbulence in their home countries. For instance, the U.K. is toying with a so-called “mansion tax” that would apply to those who own properties worth more than 2 million British pounds (or over $3 million), and China has placed restrictions on homebuying in large cities. Some foreign investors...

10 Reasons 2015 Will Rock for Real Estate DAILY REAL ESTATE NEWS | WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 31, 2014 After a slowdown in the market this year, housing analysts and economists have high hopes for 2015. The real estate market is expected to build momentum across the board nest year, mostly because of a strengthening economy. Here’s a recap of some of the real estate forecasts for 2015: Millennial force: Younger professionals are having more luck in the job market, which is expected to help more of them jump into home ownership in the new year. Overall, employment is on the rise, but jobs for Millennials — particularly those aged 25 to 29 — has risen by 3 percent. That’s one percentage point above the nationwide rate. According to some forecasts, Millennials are expected to drive two-thirds of household formations over the next five years. The forecasted addition of 2.5 million jobs next year, as well as an increase in household formation, will likely drive more first-time home buyers into home ownership, according to com® projections. Home prices stabilize: The double-digit price increases seen in 2013 have slowed, and more stable growth was the trend in 2014. As investors have retreated from the market, so have the rapid home prices in many markets. Home prices are expected to continue to edge up in 2015, with realtor.com® predicting a 4.5 percent gain. “After two years of abnormally high levels of home-price appreciation in 2012 and 2013, price increases moderated throughout 2014,” realtor.com® notes in its 2014 Housing Review. “We are now experiencing increases in home prices consistent with long-term historical performance.” Mortgage rates rising: Interest rates the last few months have been dipping below 4 percent, lowering the borrowing costs of home buyers and refinancing home owners. However, don’t expect the low rates to stick around much longer. Mortgage rates are expected to rise next year. Freddie Mac projects mortgage rates will likely average 4.6 percent but inch up to 5 percent by the end of 2015. Return of the 3 percent down payment: New programs are popping up to help more buyers break into home ownership with lower down payments. In early December, Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae announced conventional loan down-payment programs that will allow qualified first-time buyers to secure a fixed-rate mortgage with a 3 percent down payment. Prior to that, they needed at least 5 percent. Also, “there are many states as well as national programs, which offer grants that range from 1 to 5 percent to be used for a down payment or closing costs,” writes Damian Maldonado, co-founder of American Financing Corp., at CNBC. “These easing loan standards will allow more first-time buyers to enter the market.” Housing affordability...

  2015 is well on it’s way to a promising year. Please check out the current market stats to see how the real estate market is changing.   Click here for the most current market analysis:...