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The past few years have been a wild ride for real estate. This has caused many to wonder if the market will come to a screeching halt in 2023.
After a few years of rock bottom interest rates, the national average 30-year fixed rate mortgage was 6.5%, as of Feb. 23, 2023. In January 2023, the number of homes sold year-over-year was down 33.9%, while the median sale price was up 1.5% year-over-year, according to Redfin.
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While many buyers and sellers are anxiously waiting to see what happens next, Ruth Shin, founder and CEO of PropertyNest, based in Brooklyn, New York, said a complete housing market crash this year is unlikely.
“It is not currently a great market for sellers and is turning more and more into a buyers’ market, with the peak yet to come,” she said. “Mortgage rates and interest rates are still high, as are the prices.”
While sales prices have slightly declined and properties are staying on the market longer, she said there has not been a sharp price drop.
“On the contrary, in certain real estate markets in places like New York City, Los Angeles and Miami, prices are high and will remain so in the highest-demand areas, even when interest rates peak,” she said. “Although the Fed will probably raise rates again not too far from now, we will see a lag with serious home price slashing.”
More significant price drops might happen, but she said that probably won’t happen until mid-to-late summer.
“The conditions, while at times extreme in the past few years, are nothing like they were leading up to the housing crash in 2008,” she said. “There is a bubble to burst but not at the