We have had a remarkably consistent January the last three years, with virtually the same number of homes hitting the market. But in 2015, the number of new listings was 11% lower than last year – in spite of the median list price rising:
| January | ||
| 2012 | ||
| 2013 | ||
| 2014 | ||
| 2015 |
Knowing that roughly half of these new listings were on the market last year, there aren’t many new choices for buyers. As much as common sense wants to tell us that higher prices should lure more sellers to put their home on the market, it’s not happening yet!
IMO it won’t happen in NC (flood of new listings) until there is a flood of new homes in NC with pricing that makes current owners want to move up.
On the other side the current mortgage rates are so low that it makes it easier to stay put (rather than downsize) or turn current home into rental.
Also with the low mortgage rates (and the new RM’s) it makes it an easier decision to stay put rather than down-locate, (yea I just invented that Term)
JtR:
With so little fresh inventory coming online in the past 2 weeks, I believe the property-ladder market is broken. Current owner households are afraid to list because they do not see any viable alternative, either “up-locating or down-locating” (ht Jiji), to move into. The proverbial fence can only hold so many sitters.
I think you have to throw in the property Tax Base as well.
If you have a pre-2000~ property tax base on your home, moving will mean a big tax increase.
Yeah, I think that Prop 13 is really doing a disservice to not just the market, but schools, police, fire, etc.
Legislators should make changes to Prop 13 to level the playing field a bit more for new home buyers and current home owners.
In other words, current owners need more incentive to get out of their homes. Prop 13 in it’s current form is forcing many of them to stay put.
Perhaps some sort of “grandfather” clause, where if you are a current home owner and you are purchasing a home in the same county, then you are allowed to keep the same rate and subsequent yearly rate of increase on the new home.
Kind of like transferable mortgages. This would be transferable property tax, sort of.
Eddie
That already exists. See Prop 16
I think you are referring to Proposition 60,
California homeowners 55 and older get a one-time chance to sell their primary residence and transfer its property-tax assessment to a new one, but the market value of the new home generally must be equal to or less than the market value of the old home.
also I think it only works in SD if both homes are in SD in this case.
Darn iPhone Auto correct. Yes I meant Prop 60. And Prop 90 allows for transfer between many countries in California including the main ones.