Local Real Estate Market Slowing Down

National headlines have been detailing for nearly a year now the slowdown in the real estate market. The local real estate market was not impacted drastically right away but is now experiencing a decrease in sales. Through the end of August, the Huntington area residential real estate market is down around 18% from last year based on numbers obtained from the Huntington Board of Realtors. Last year was a great year for the Huntington area residential real estate market.

There have been some significant changes that are having an effect on the local area as well as the nation such as the elimination of various loan programs that allowed many to purchase homes with little or no down payment. Also, consumer's credit scores are being utilized more to determine what interest rate that a purchaser will get in obtaining a home loan. There is a tier system being used by some lenders with a higher credit score being able to obtain the best interest rate. There have been other changes to different loan programs making it harder for potential buyers to get a loan.

I try to look at the glass half full versus half empty. Certain areas of our market and certain price ranges are still doing well. If you are a seller moving up to higher price range then you might end up doing well if the home that you are selling is in an area of our market that has not had a significant decline. The home you might be buying in this example that may be at a higher price may be experiencing a decline which may allow you to get a better deal.

Interest rates still remain low and there are various home choices in our market. Please feel free to contact me if you have any questions or have a story idea for my blog at todd@toddnelson.com.