Home >> Media >> The MReport Webcast: Monday 7/25/2016
Print This Post Print This Post

The MReport Webcast: Monday 7/25/2016

Housing inventory has been tight across the country for many months, according to multiple reports across the mortgage industry, and homes are selling at an increasingly faster rate in terms of average time on the market. The low inventory presents fewer options to homebuyers and therefore has created a competitive market in which buyers are moving even more quickly to close on homes, according to Zillow. In June, the average home closed after being on the market for an average of 78 days, which is a week faster than the average time it took a home to close in June 2015.

Since that number includes the time it takes to close, typically one to two months after the house goes under contract, that means homes are pending within about a month of being listed. The average time a home stays on the market has been steadily declining since 2010, when it was about five months. One effect the tight inventory is having on the housing market is an increase in home values. In June, the average home in the U.S. was worth 187 thousand dollars, which was up year-over-year by 5 point 4 percent.

In response to the rapid home price appreciation the country has been experiencing for most of the last four to five years, U.S. Senator Ron Wyden from Oregon has introduced the First-Time Homebuyer Tax Credit Act of 2016 to aid first-time homebuyers. Wyden’s proposal would give first-time homebuyers a refundable tax credit equal to 2 point 5 percent of the home’s purchase, with a maximum credit of up to 10 thousand dollars. Wyden is in the process of finalizing a bill to be released in September that would help provide affordable rental properties for moderate-income families.

About Author: Seth Welborn

Seth Welborn is a Harding University graduate with a degree in English and a minor in writing. He is a contributing writer for MReport. An East Texas Native, he has studied abroad in Athens, Greece and works part-time as a photographer.
x

Check Also

The Week Ahead: Balancing the Economy and Housing

An upcoming webinar will feature Patrick F. Stone, and Economist Dr. Bill Conerly analyzing the economy and its impact on housing, and provide predictions on the upcoming quarter and the remainder of 2023.