US Economic Report

Median Home Prices

Median list prices are at a high for the first time in March at $300,000 according to a realtor.com report. According to Realtor, there are 1,349,597 active listings currently on the market with a 4% increase year over year.  Some parts of the country annual price growth have been down, nationally list prices have raised 7.2% year after year in March.

Jobless Claims

Wall Street economist expected to add 175,000 non-farm payrolls in March but exceeded that expectation with 196,000 jobs in March. Jobless claims have been at an all-time low since 1969. The last week of March Jobless claims reached 202,000, which was 10,000 lower than the expected 216,000 analysts were expecting.  

What this Means for You

So what does this mean for you? If you are a real estate purchaser this is not the best information. Why? The US economy is doing great and looking better every day and this economic information coupled with currently lower interest rates are pushing the prices of homes higher. These factors will likely create a tornado effect in the market that will quickly drop property inventories, which will, in turn, further push home prices higher.

On the other hand, sellers, your property values are moving higher and are poised to sell faster than we have seen in the past 20 years. As always, no one knows how long a market will be pushing higher, but we expect the conditions to continue for the next 12 to 24 months. If you have a property that you have been holding through the great recession, this might finally be the time to cash out your equity and find that next home in your life.