Infographics – Page 9 – Great Alaska Homes

0 Is Your First Home Within Your Grasp Now? [INFOGRAPHIC]

According to the US Census Bureau, ‘millennials’ are defined as 18-36-year-olds.
According to NAR’s latest Profile of Home Buyers & Sellers, the median age of all first-time home buyers is 32.
More and more ‘old millennials’ (25-36) are realizing that homeownership is within their grasp now!

Setting up an automatic savings plan that saves a small amount of every check is one of the best ways to save without thinking much about it.
Living within a budget right now will help you save money for down payments while also paying down other debts that might be holding you back.
What are you willing to cut back on to make your dreams of homeownership a reality?

The National Association of REALTORS® recently surveyed their members for their Confidence Index.
The REALTORS® Confidence Index is a key indicator of housing market strength based on a monthly survey sent to over 50,000 real estate practitioners. Practitioners are asked about their expectations for home sales, prices and market conditions.
Homes sold in less than 60 days in 35 out of 50 states and Washington D.C.
Homes typically went under contract in 30 days in March!

According to the latest Existing Home Sales Report from the National Association of Realtors, sales grew 1.1% in March to an annual pace of 5.60 million.
This is the strongest pace since November of 2017.
Inventory levels dropped year-over-year for the 34^th consecutive month and are now 7.2% lower than March 2017 levels, representing a 3.6-month supply.

The average down payment for first-time homebuyers is only 6%!
Despite mortgage interest rates being over 4%, rates are still below historic numbers.
88% of property managers raised their rents in the last 12 months!
The credit score requirements for mortgage approval continue to fall.

A trend that has been emerging for some time now is the contrast between inventory & demand in the Premium & Luxury Markets vs. the Starter & Trade-Up Home Markets and what that’s, in turn, doing to prices!
Inventory continues to rise in the luxury & premium home markets which is causing prices to cool.
Demand continues to rise with low inventory in the starter & trade-up home markets, causing prices to rise!

Since the creation of the VA Home Loans Program, 22 million veterans have been able to achieve the American Dream of homeownership.
In 2017, $188 billion was loaned to veterans and their families through the program.
VA Purchase Loans are on the rise in 46 out of 50 states and Washington, DC.

Historically, the choice between renting or buying a home has been a tough decision.
Looking at the percentage of income needed to rent a median-priced home today (28.9%) vs. the percentage needed to buy a median-priced home (15.7%), the choice becomes obvious.
Every market is different. Before you renew your lease again, find out if you can put your housing costs to work by buying this year!

When listing your house for sale your top goal will be to get the home sold for the best price possible!
There are many small projects that you can do to ensure this happens!
Your real estate agent will have a list of specific suggestions for getting your house ready for market and is a great resource for finding local contractors who can help!

Interest rates are projected to increase steadily heading into 2019.
The higher your interest rate, the more money you end up paying for your home and the higher your monthly payment will be.
Rates are still low right now. Don’t wait until rates hit 5% to start searching for your dream home!