Archives for December 2014

As your family or lifestyle changes you may consider adding extra space to your home rather than moving into a new space. Here are some tips you should consider before adding extra living space to your home: Look at your options and decide if you want to hire an architect or skip that step and hire a construction company straight-away. Decide how much you are willing to spend. You can use helpful sites like CostHelper.com to estimate your total expense. Consider adding the room to an existing base of your home, like the basement in order to cut costs. Lastly, prepare yourself for a noisy atmosphere or other discomfort while the work is being done. You may want to make arrangements to stay with family or friends while the construction crew is on site. More here

Home prices have gradually increased this year, and while that trend is expected to continue into the first of the year, Capital Economics has stated that home price gains will begin to level out. Experts believe that as we progress into 2015, price gains will average around 4%. Supply is expected to increase helping home price growth become more stable in the coming year. Experts are also expecting interest rates to jump. Paul Diggle, a property economist for Capital Economics said, “a March rate hike is not out of the question. Thereafter, we expect the Fed to continue raising rates more aggressively than the markets expect, with the Fed funds rate reaching 3% by the end of 2016. In turn, that means that 30-year mortgage rates will increase from 4.1% now to 5.5% by the end of 2015 and 5.8% by the end of 2016. Housing affordability will deteriorate, but even by end-2016 affordability will be more favorable than the historical norm.” More here

According to Realtor.com, 2015 may be a big year for the housing market. First-time homebuyers are expected to make a significant return to the market next year, and home sales are predicted to increase by approximately 25%. Experts have compiled a list of some expected hot housing markets in 2015 that take into account affordability, employment rates, and growing population. A few cities that top the list are Atlanta, Des Moines, Dallas, Houston, Los Angeles and Denver. More here