I want to talk to you today about real estate.

And we all know that in the last couple of years, real estate prices have just gone through the roof, you know, significant percent gains yearly, specifically in the last two years. But in this area, probably since 2015, things have always started taking off. And now we’re seeing a significant lack of inventory in Florida and other parts of the country, specifically in the Hernando County area. And we are severely below what normal inventory levels need to be.

We’ve all heard about the last couple of months, probably the last three or four, talk of a recession. The FEDs have been increasing interest rates, and that’s had an impact on mortgages. I’ve been watching that data. New applications for mortgage refi are falling off and non-existent. Even the mortgage applications to buy a new or existing home has dropped. Depending upon the market, you’re in 15%, 20%, 30%, or 40%. And so we’re seeing kind of a cooling off right now of the real estate market. It appears to be that way.

I was researching deeper than just the numbers. And by the numbers, I mean the drop in the sales price. We’re seeing many people starting to realize that they had their home significantly overpriced based on the value, based on the market. But people were paying those numbers because there was such a lack of inventory. People wanted to be here in Florida, more specifically, getting into the suburbs and out of the major metropolitan areas where it’s cheaper to live. So we had a great price run over the last several years.

What we’re seeing right now is a pullback in the listing prices, what I’m gathering. But even the sales prices, the prices that the homes are selling for, are holding pretty strong. So I want to make sure that if you’re in the market or a new house and you want to hold off, I’m not saying prices won’t eventually come down, but don’t be misled by the listing prices coming down because those listings that are coming down were overpriced anyhow. And they were fishing for that person who had to be in the area. You had to buy a house or willing to buy anything to get into the area. So, you know, there are a lot of different factors that you have to evaluate when you’re buying real estate and trying to get in at the right time.

Don’t think that just listing prices are coming down. Listing prices may decrease more, and the actual sales prices may drop. I mean, we hear more and more of those predictions that we’re going to have a leveling off and even cooling off of the housing market, especially in specific markets. But I want to highlight the fact again. I’ve said it once or twice, and I will repeat it.

Don’t just look at the drop in listing prices and think that the housing market is cooling off. The sales prices aren’t at the moment; listing prices are coming down, but sales prices could be next.

People realize that the top of the market may be here, and they may have missed the top of the market. But they want to get their home on the market and get at or near the top.

Whether you believe we’re in a recession or not, people are starting to feel the effects of the recession and need to sell their homes because they can’t, can’t afford them, or know they can’t afford them going forward.

So again, we hope to see more inventory on the market that will make it better for home buyers to find a home, and we’ll decrease the pressure on the housing market. But I highly recommend that if you are in the market for a house or want to list your house, please see us here at Suncoast Cpa Group. We can help you out. Find that dream home or dream property.