What’s the Latest?
Week of June 19th - June 25th
Property Tips and Tricks
Paint it, gray?!
Well, it is official - dark gray walls correlate to higher offer prices in every room according to a survey among 4,700 home buyers throughout the country. Painting a wall dark gray in the kitchen, living room, bathroom, and bedroom can lead to a higher sales price by thousands of dollars according to the survey conducted. All I have to say is...color me surprised. I have always been a fan of choosing something brighter, particularly white or off-white, when painting a house to get it ready for a sale. It is worth noting that this study was conducted by none other than Zillow, the leading residential real estate search portal in the United States. While Zillow is renowned for its user-friendly interface, they are not renowned for representing accurate data and listing information.
Real Estate News
Home starts..and stops
Home builders surprised the housing market by reporting a record increase in housing starts (the number of homes that are entering the beginning of the construction phase), reaching 1.63 million in May 2023—an impressive 21% surge from the previous month. This surge could indicate the growing optimism among home builders and apartment developers about the recovery of the US housing market this year. Investors in the stock market are also showing bullish sentiment, driving up home builder stock prices to unprecedented levels. One example of this is D.R. Horton, the nation's largest homebuilder. Their stock is up almost 20% in the past month and is sitting at an all-time high.
It is common knowledge amongst real estate folks that there have not been enough homes built over the past 10 or 15 years to keep up with the growing demand, and perhaps the homebuilders are now deciding to play catch up. The timing of this is interesting, since traffic at homebuilding sites remains 35% below pre-pandemic levels, and some economic indicators predict a worsening recession in 2023.
Another update that recently surfaced is that there were fewer homes for sale across the country in the month of May, 2023 than any other month on record, per a recent report from Redfin. The graph above shows the history of U.S. homes for sale over the past 11 years, and the truth is there are far fewer options for buyers.
I think there could be a couple of reasons for the sudden increase in home starts and one of them is that home builders and developers are thinking the mortgage rates will stay elevated for an extended period of time, and that will keep supply/active homes for sale at a lower level. Being able to push out new homes in the short term, while the supply is very low, could benefit them.
Does this mean that we will get more homes built soon on the severely supply-constricted Monterey Peninsula? I am not sure I would hold my breath on that one. It was rumored a while ago that a large homebuilder was purchasing the 130-or so lots where Rancho Cañada used to be but I have not been able to confirm that rumor. There has been good clearing progress made at the old September Ranch, which is the site of ONE Carmel. This will be a new community comprised of 73 estate lots averaging around 4.38 acres each, with the total development spanning 891 acres. The location is very convenient - just a couple miles in on Carmel Valley Road, so ten minutes to the beach, but the community is located in the sunbelt.
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Jonathan Balog
DRE# 01980970
Broker
M: 831.747.0310
[email protected]
Compass is a real estate broker licensed by the State of California operating under multiple entities. License Numbers 01991628, 1527235, 1527365, 1356742, 1443761, 1997075, 1935359, 1961027, 1842987, 1869607, 1866771, 1527205, 1079009, 1272467. All material is intended for informational purposes only and is compiled from sources deemed reliable but is subject to errors, omissions, changes in price, condition, sale, or withdrawal without notice. No statement is made as to the accuracy of any description or measurements (including square footage). This is not intended to solicit property already listed. No financial or legal advice provided. Equal Housing Opportunity. Photos may be virtually staged or digitally enhanced and may not reflect actual property conditions.
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