As we head toward the end of the year, we wanted to give you an update on what we’re seeing in the St. Cloud real estate market. Here’s what we’ve been noticing.
There are a few different topics that I want to touch on today to give you the latest news and information about the St. Cloud real estate market.
The first is interest rates. You’ve probably heard on the news that rates are rising, but these reports are actually referring to the increase of the overnight rates between banks — not mortgage rates, specifically. While the Fed is raising those short-term rates by 0.25%, it doesn’t necessarily have a direct impact on the mortgage market. In fact, the last time the interest rates went up by 0.25%, mortgage rates actually dropped a bit.
The mortgage interest rates right now are around the 4.75% range. This is a little bit higher than they were earlier this year, but it’s far better than they’ve been in the past. For example, in the 1980s we were selling houses with mortgage rates in the 15% range. It was really expensive back then. Payments were high and affordability was low. We’ll probably see rates around 5% around the beginning of 2019, but when you look at the context, that’s still a bargain rate.
“The spring market starts on January 2.”
Another thing to note is that our market’s sale numbers are continuing at a strong rate. Right now, we have 276 pending sales, which is significantly higher than what we saw last year. If you’re looking for a home right now, we have about 810 homes on the market, which is higher than what we’ve seen earlier in the year.
Lastly, our spring market typically starts on January 2. The weather doesn’t feel like spring, but spring is approaching for our real estate market. If you have any questions about your buying or selling plans in 2019, don’t hesitate to give me a call or send me an email today. I’d love to help out in whatever way I can.
