Zillow’s chief economist published a New Year’s ‘Housing Market Resolutions’ list. It reveals just how dire things have gotten

yahoo! Finance ^ | 01/03/2024 | Alena Botros

[millenial4freedom]

High home prices and even higher mortgage rates; that’s how most people would describe last year’s housing market—one that by some estimates was the least affordable since the 1980s.

It’s simple: Home prices skyrocketed during the pandemic and rose steadily last year despite mortgage rates more than doubling. Those high mortgage rates, having risen from historic lows, kept homeowners from selling, which further exacerbated already tight supply and kept home prices up—all while chilling the housing market. The situation was so dire, and still may be aside from slight improvements in affordability, that Zillow’s chief economist, Skylar Olsen, released her own “wish list” for this year’s housing market.

Olsen’s “Housing Market Resolutions,” published last week, encompasses a number of topics, from the so-called lock-in effect, to the shortage of homes for sale across the country, to mortgage rates.

[millenial4freedom]

1 - more homeowners to sell their homes

2 - more housing. “Build, build, build,”

3 - the job market holds strong and remains stable

4 - there are more ways for first-time homebuyers to build credit

[9YearLurker]

5. Deport, deport, deport.

[Mr. Mojo]

<< “In the long run, adding to the housing stock through new construction is even more important than more inventory coming from existing homeowners because of the housing shortage,” >>

The shortage is further exacerbated by the currently non-existent national borders.

[gnarledmaw]

Im having trouble telling which of those on this forum that spend a lot of time talking about real estate are the con artists and which are the marks.

Who is going to buy all these overpriced houses when the largest generation to have ever lived kicks off? Thats a whole lot of empty McMansions. Is the idea being that this will kick off a giant nationwide round of musical chairs reinvigorating the economy? Its not much of a game if there are more chairs than there are butts.

Maybe the marks are the ones that think there are big killings to be made.

Maybe the banks and government are like Japan already colluding to make real estate just another disposable consumer good.

[dfwgator]

People from all over the world want US Real Estate as a safe haven, and are willing to pay cash for it. That is what drove prices up, and squeezed out Americans.

[HonkyTonkMan]

Zillow, a company that sells advertising spaces and leads for real estate transactions, wants more people to sell their property, thereby raising it's revenues.

I'm shocked!

[Bulwyf]

Shut down immigration, deport mass numbers.

[SaveFerris]

(It reveals just how dire things have gotten)

And yet the idiots support Joe Biden’s open borders

[Sequoyah101]

I see lots of little houses in rural areas that are EMPTY and EMPTY for so long they are starting to fall apart. I see new ones added just about every trip I make on one familiar route. They are becoming nicer and nicer houses, abandoned. I guess the kids don’t want to live in them or sell the property.