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TOP 8 CITIES WITH DECLINING HOME PRICES

The affordability of homes in the United States has reached its lowest point since 1985, primarily due to high mortgage rates. The mortgage rates reached 8,00%, the highest rates for a decade. Due to the borrowing costs, many buyers are resilient to buy a new property. On top of that prices of homes are higher due to lack of inventory. But for buyers looking to invest outside of Florida here are some towns were you might have a chance to bargain.

1. Austin, Texas: 10,3% price decline 2. Honolulu, Hawaii: 5,8 % price decline 3. Jackson, Mississippi: 4,8% price decline 4. Shreveport, Louisiana: 4,6% price decline 5. Cape Coral, Florida: 3,6% price decline 6. Kennewick, Washington: 2,5% price decline 7. Jacksonville, Florida: 2% price decline 8. Pensacola, Florida: 1,5% price decline

NEVER A GOOD TIME TO BUY?

Over the past 15 years, vacant housing units dropped from 2.2 million to 732,000, despite a population increase. Stats show record-high home prices, making homes unaffordable for many. The pandemic and inflation have made the situation worse. Initially, low interest rates enticed many people to buy a home, but when rates rose, the real estate market suddenly fell, causing a lack of choice and transactions.

The country lacks homes due to a decade of underbuilding. Even if interest rates drop, it won't solve the core issue of the housing shortage. This means that until more homes are built, the situation won't improve.

So, what can you do if you want a place of your own? If you can afford to pay cash, then do it since it's useless to just wait forever. Others could buy now and try to refinance later or put down a bigger down payment upfront to lower the mortgage costs. Many people just keep procrastinating but they'll end up renting for many years to come since the housing shortage is not going away anytime soon.

Some states are trying to boost housing development by relaxing zoning and building restrictions and therefore reduce the problem. This shortage of homes issues will take time to be solved because it is driven by a high demand. There are always solutions for those willing to buy. Ask me if you are looking to buy and I will give you my honest opinion!

WANT TO OWN A MORTGAGE-FREE HOME ?

In the United States, the way people own homes is changing. About 40% of homeowners now fully own their homes, which means they don't have to pay any mortgage. This is a big change, and these smart homeowners took advantage of low interest rates to refinanced their homes and pay off their debt.

The percentage of american homes without mortgages increased by 5 points between 2012 and 2022, reaching an all-time high of just under 40%. A majority of these homeowners are now in their retirement years as per the graph, most have between 65- to 74-year-old. This change happened because, in the 1990s and 2000s interest rates for home loans were low. People took advantage of this by refinancing their mortgages multiple times, sometimes into shorter plans, and they paid off their loans faster. Also, the value of homes went up after the Great Recession.

Some are staying where they are, enjoying not having a mortgage. Others are selling their homes in expensive areas and using the money to buy maybe smaller homes in places where they want to retire like Florida. Even though financial experts usually say it's better to invest money than to pay off a mortgage early, many people find a lot of happiness and relief in not owing anything to the bank each month. In the United States, more people are achieving a mortgage-free status through various means such as inheriting a property, making additional payments, or utilizing unexpected funds. This trend is gaining popularity and being mortgage-free is becoming more common and desirable.