A report from Mansion Global. “What goes up, must come down. That’s apparently the motto of the current U.S. housing market, which, after a wildly prosperous peak-pandemic run, is now seeing values plummet. Homeowners across the country have collectively lost $2.3 trillion in home value since the figure peaked in June 2022, according to Redfin. Nowhere have values dropped more than in San Francisco. There, the collective worth of the housing market fell 6.7%—or $37.3 billion—year over year in December to $517.5 billion, a larger drop in percentage terms than any other major U.S. metropolitan area, Redfin said.”
The Daily Hampshire Gazette. “Signs of a cooling real estate market continued to emerge in January, according to the Realtor Association of the Pioneer Valley, with home sales dropping by almost 50% compared to January 2022 in Hampshire County. ‘The Massachusetts single-family market finally hit that wall we’ve all been anticipating,’ stated Tim Warren, CEO of The Warren Group. ‘We’re starting to see that market correction,’ said Lori Beth Chase, president of the Realtor Association of the Pioneer Valley. Some of January’s statistics, such as a 23% drop in median sale prices compared to the same month last year in Franklin County, can be seen not only as a result of a relatively small sample size — 36 closed sales — but as part of this process, Chase said.”
The Palm Beach Post in Florida. “Realtor Steve Simpson believes Palm Beach County has flipped to a buyer’s market. ‘There’s no question about it,’ said Simpson, a Realtor with William Raveis Realty. ‘There are a lot of buyers out there, but they are sitting on their hands. They’re waiting for the dust to settle.’ Simpson said he’s seen high-end asking prices regularly reduced in recent months, including on his own listings. A home he listed near North Palm Beach that started at $1.5 million, went to $1.2 million and finally to $945,000. ‘At that price, it went under contract immediately, and there was another person who wanted it right after that,’ Simpson said. ‘If you get to the right price, you find the vein, and it sells.’”
Go Banking Rates on Texas. “The Austin housing market has actually cooled considerably since the height of the pandemic. Homes here are spending far more time on the market than they did this time last year, and home prices have dropped considerably since their 2022 peak. Caret Down: ‘Yes, housing prices in Austin have been consistently declining. Median home prices are 5.4 percent lower in January 2023 than they were in January 2022, per Redfin, and the current median of $530,000 is more than $100K less than it was in May 2022. In addition, 33.8 percent of homes sold in January experienced a price drop.”
Business Insider on Arizona. “In Phoenix, not only is investor appetite for properties falling drastically, but home prices are in freefall as well. Phoenix is one of the US cities with the largest decline in home prices. December’s $410,000 median sale price represented a 10.5% drop from the 2022 peak price of a typical home in the desert metropolis of 1.62 million people.”
From Summit Daily. “Decreased home prices. More housing inventory. Rising interest rates. Short-term rental regulations. According to a recent report by Dana Cottrell, a Summit County broker and spokesperson for the Colorado Association of Realtors, the price of a single-family home decreased in January by about 10% compared to the 2022 average — to a value of $1.85 million.”
“For homeowners using their property as a short-term rental, many have been locked into an interest rate closer to zero if they purchased those homes before inflation began to climb. As the county seeks to reduce the amount of short-term rental properties over the coming years with a new cap on licenses, Leah Canfield, a broker associate, said some of those homeowners may be reluctant to sell their property. ‘There are certain sellers saying ‘I have to hold onto my home,’ Canfield said.”
The Monterey Herald in California. “Monterey County’s housing market continues to be influenced by its tight inventory, holding its median home price at $849,500 in January up 11% from December but down 2% from a year ago. Existing, single-family home sales in Monterey County totaled 98 in January, down 15% from December and down 40% from January 2022. Inventory increased 4% from December, and jumped 38% from a year ago. Adam Pinterits, Monterey County Association of Realtors Government and Community Affairs Director, said that buyers have been looking for deals, are watching the market closely and expecting adjusted prices. Whereas sellers tend to cling to older data and still expect to get higher prices. Local realtors are helping buyers and sellers make transactions happen somewhere in the middle between these expectations.”
“In Santa Cruz County, the median single-family home cost $1,160,000 and sold in 35 days for 96% of the list price based on 62 sales in January. Median days on the market increased 50% and new listings fell 28% from a year ago. In San Benito County, the median single-family home cost $745,000 and sold in 29 days for 99% of the list price based on 22 sales in January.”
The Sacramento Bee in California. “The keynote speaker at the 2023 State of Downtown breakfast said he expected to find downtown Sacramento more blighted. ‘I expected to see more of it significantly overriding your downtown, but it actually is not as bad as some other places,’ said Brent Toderian, a city planner from Vancouver, British Columbia. Toderian said homeless in Sacramento is not as severe as in his city, though it is significant when coupled with drugs, violence and mental health needs.”
From Bloomberg. “Wells Fargo & Co. cut hundreds of jobs in its mortgage unit this week, adding to thousands of cuts last year, as the firm retreats from a business it once dominated. The latest reductions affected more than 500 employees, according to a person familiar with the matter. Wells Fargo announced a ‘new strategic direction’ for the business last month that includes exiting correspondent lending, a pivot that Chief Financial Officer Mike Santomassimo said last week is ‘largely done.’ The firm also said it will shrink the portfolio of loans it services. JPMorgan Chase & Co. eliminated hundreds of positions in its mortgage unit this month, on top of reductions last year.”
The Globe and Mail in Canada. “Some Toronto sellers are still looking for peak prices, says broker Andre Kutyan. In the luxury segment, many downsizers are holding firm. Mr. Kutyan was recently asked to evaluate a high-end property in the Bayview and York Mills area. ‘The meeting went very well until it came to my assessment of the value of the home,’ Mr. Kutyan says. ‘The meeting got cut short rather quickly.’ Mr. Kutyan’s conservative estimate was that the house should be listed below $7-million. The sellers listed with another agent for more than $8-million.”
“The benchmark price in the area has dropped about 12.2 per cent from the peak to about $3.744-million in January, Mr. Kutyan points out. Properties in that price range may sit for as long as one or two years if they are priced too high, which is a risky strategy in a downward market, in his opinion. ‘Frankly I see trouble north of seven [million].’ Mr. Kutyan says even buyers at the high end are influenced by the level of interest rates. If they are moving up from an existing property, the amount they are likely to fetch has fallen as well. ‘The value of the home they’re selling is coming down, plus higher rates, so it’s a one-two punch.’”
The New Zealand Herald. “The owners of a South Auckland home have been hit with a million-dollar loss after reselling their house just one year after buying it in a further sign of how far Auckland house prices continue to fall. The owners paid $2.3 million for the St George St home in Papatoetoe in December 2021 but yesterday resold it at auction for $1.305m. The Herald understands the grim sale is related to personal issues rather than pressure from the falling housing market. The Herald is unsure why the owners paid $2.3m for the house in 2021 when its council valuation was $1.425m at the time.”
“A real estate agent connected with the recent sale said they could not comment. The home’s most recent Barfoot & Thompson marketing material said it was a ‘winner takes all – urgent sale’ situation. ‘Our vendor’s circumstances dictate that this beautiful family home is now on the market and make no mistake it WILL sell on, or before, the Auction Day. Get in quick to make the most of the short auction campaign – this is a one-off opportunity to pick up a much-admired home,’ it stated.”
“It comes as Auckland’s median sales price hit $940,000 this month, down 21.7 per cent on the same time last year, according to the Real Estate Institute’s January report. Nationally, the median national sale price fell 13.3 per cent annually to $762,500 and decreased 9.3 per cent for New Zealand, excluding Auckland, to $679,000. Wellington, Auckland, Northland and Bay of Plenty had the largest drop in the median sale price, down 16.4 per cent, 21.7 per cent, 16.6 per cent and 18.8 per cent respectively. The Reinz House Price Index, designed as a more comprehensive measure of house values, also fell 13.9 per cent.”
The Bangkok Post. “New condo supply launched in central Bangkok this year should not be priced higher than existing inventory because a glut remains amid stagnant purchasing power, says a real estate consultancy. Artitaya Kasemlawan, head of residential sales projects at property consultant CBRE Thailand, said developers are set to launch new condo projects in downtown locations after freezing development during the pandemic. ‘While development costs are higher, developers that plan to launch new condo projects in downtown Bangkok may lower margins by setting more competitive prices because there’s a lot of unsold units with old prices remaining available,’ she said.”
The Independent. “In the wake of the debate in Parliament earlier this month on housing, Workers’ Party MP Jamus Lim (Sengkang GRC) posted about why the price of a home is too high, and how this affects Singaporeans’ retirement. He also made the point that reserves are tapped to fund larger housing grants, adding that ‘It’s robbing Ah Seng to pay Ah Huat.’ He raised the point that as flats get more expensive, this has an effect on Singaporeans’ retirement.”
“‘This stems from the fact that most Singaporeans use their CPF to pay for their HDB mortgages…The problem is that it now conflates two differing objectives: high prices mean higher returns for retirement (good), but it also means that it’s harder for couples starting out to get a roof over their heads without breaking the bank (bad),’ he wrote. ‘ Over time, inflated house prices mean higher grants to make up the difference. Where does this money come from? In part, from interest from our reserves. So on one hand, we’re propping up high land valuations—arguing that any other approach amounts to a raid in the reserves—but on the other, we’re tapping more on revenues, to fund the larger grants. It’s robbing Ah Seng to pay Ah Huat ”