Real Estate Trends | Best Polk County Realtor
After a Wild 2021, What Real Estate Trends Should You Expect in 2022?
Coming off some serious pandemic fatigue, the national real estate market was on fire! With people working from home, and interest rates at historic lows, 2021 will likely finish with the highest home sale mark in 15 years. Additionally, with the huge demand, home prices increased an average of 20%! Some markets even saw increases double that amount!
With so much action on the market for the last year, what kinds of real estate trends can you expect as we roll into 2022?
If You Are Thinking of Buying, Now’s the Time
If you weren’t one of the many that opted to buy a home during the 2021 buying frenzy, then NOW is probably the time. According to Realtor.com’s chief economist, the general expectation going into 2022 is that home prices will continue to increase on top of 2021’s highs. On top of that, it is generally expected that mortgage rates will start to see gradual increases as well.
This is bad news if you have been holding out on purchasing a home due to affordability. Increasing home prices and higher interest rates means that getting a home will be even more expensive going into 2022. Right now is probably going to be the most affordable time to buy.
New Home Developments Present Great Opportunities
When there is a hot real estate market, the biggest factor that drives prices is usually related to inventory. If demand for homes is higher than the supply of homes, prices increase. This works out great for seller’s looking to cash out on their home value reaching new highs, but makes it hard as a buyer competing with many other buyers, for limited supplies.
The good news is that some markets are seeing new housing developments pop up. Polk County, Florida, is one of the hottest real estate markets in the country. New housing developments in Polk County are a great way to get into a home. Many new housing developments actually offer great buyer’s incentives to buy with them. This may include cash back at closing, included upgrades, and included appliances.
READ ABOUT OTHER GREAT REASONS TO BUY NEW RIGHT HERE
Housing Geography Will Continue to Change
Stay-at-Home orders and general pandemic mania created new working lifestyles for many people. Remote work and “work-from-home” have replaced daily commutes and cubicles for many people. This opened up new housing markets since many people were no longer tied to a location for their job. According to the CEO of Realogy Franchise Group, this trend will continue into 2022. Remote and hybrid work styles will help maintain steady market demand for housing, especially into new markets and suburbs, as many workers are no longer tied down to the direct area in which their work is located.
Home Design Trends Will Evolve
Open floor plans have been the rage for the last several years, however, the pandemic also changed the way we use our living space. Many people that have converted to a remote, work-from-home lifestyle found that open floor plans presented challenges. For example, without a dedicated extra room for an office, a flowing floor plan between dining, living, family, and kitchen spaces makes it difficult to create a working “office” space that has the privacy necessary for work.
As such, look for older, resale homes that feature more traditional spaces to gain popularity, and for people to shop for houses that can specifically accommodate a dedicated work space.
Understand Real Estate Trends
DRJ Real Estate is your Polk County home specialist, whether you are looking to buy, sell, or refinance. We are also specialists when it comes to new housing developments in the area. Our relationships with many builders means that we are aware of inventory and incentive specials that aren’t always well known.
When it comes to understanding real estate trends, the DRJ Real Estate team is here for you. We offer online seller’s and buyer’s courses to help you learn all the best home selling tips and buyer’s secrets. Being informed about real estate trends will help you make smart decisions when you buy, sell, or refinance a home.
If you are looking to move into the beautiful Polk County Florida area, or you are looking to sell your house, then CONTACT DRJ REAL ESTATE right now to put us to work for you! We are Polk County’s premier, full service real estate team that specializes in Polk County and Lakeland real estate.
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Real Estate Trends | Best Polk County Realtor
