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What is the Best Investment for Americans?

What is the Best Investment for Americans? | MyKCM

Some are reporting that there is trepidation regarding the real estate market in the United States. Apparently, the American people are quite comfortable.

Porch.com, a major network helping homeowners with their renovation projects, recently conducted a survey which asked Americans:

“What do you believe is the safest investment over the next 10 years?”

U.S. housing came in at number one, beating out other investments such as gold, stocks, bonds, and savings.

Here is a graph showing the top five investments Americans selected:What is the Best Investment for Americans? | MyKCMThe findings of the Porch.com survey also coincide with two previous surveys done earlier this year:

  1. The Federal Reserve Bank’s 2019 Consumer Expectations Housing Survey reported that 65% of Americans believe homeownership is a good financial investment, and that the percentage has increased in each of the last four years.
  2. The Gallup survey showed that Americans have picked real estate as the “best” investment for six straight years.

Bottom Line

Based on all three surveys done this year, we can see that Americans still believe in homeownership as a great investment, and that feeling continues to grow.

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Top 5 Reasons You Should NOT FSBO

Top 5 Reasons You Should NOT FSBO | MyKCM

Rising home prices coupled with a lack of inventory in today’s market may cause some homeowners to consider selling their home on their own (known in the industry as a For Sale By Owner). However, a FSBO might not be a good idea for the vast majority of sellers.

The top 5 reasons are listed below:

1. Online Strategy for Prospective Purchasers

Recent studies have shown that 95% of buyers search online for a home. In comparison, only 13% use print newspaper ads. Most real estate agents have an Internet strategy to promote the sale of your home. Do you?

2. Results Come from the Internet

Where did buyers find the home they actually purchased?

  • 50% on the Internet
  • 7% from a yard sign
  • 28% from a Real Estate Agent
  • 1% from newspapers

The days of selling your house by putting up a sign and listing it in the paper are long gone. Having a strong Internet strategy is crucial.

3. There Are Too Many People to Negotiate With

Here is a list of some of the people with whom you must be prepared to negotiate if you decide to For Sale By Owner:

  • The buyer who wants the best deal possible
  • The buyer’s agent, who solely represents the best interest of the buyer
  • The buyer’s attorney (in some parts of the country)
  • The home inspection companies, which work for the buyer and will almost always find some problems with the house
  • The appraiser, if there is a question of value

4. FSBOing Has Become Increasingly Difficult

The paperwork involved in the process has increased dramatically as industry disclosures and regulations have become mandatory. This is one of the reasons that the percentage of people FSBOing has dropped from 19% to 7% over the last 20+ years.

5. You Net More Money When Using an Agent

Many homeowners believe that they will save the real estate commission by selling on their own. Realize that the main reason buyers look at FSBOs is because they also believe they can save the real estate agent’s commission. The seller and buyer can’t both save the commission.

A study by Collateral Analytics revealed that FSBOs don’t actually save anything by forgoing the help of an agent. In some cases, they may actually cost themselves more. One of the main reasons for the price difference at the time of sale is:

“Properties listed with a broker that is a member of the local MLS will be listed online with all other participating broker websites, marketing the home to a much larger buyer population. And those MLS properties generally offer compensation to agents who represent buyers, incentivizing them to show and sell the property and again potentially enlarging the buyer pool.”

The more buyers that view a home, the greater the chance of a bidding war for the property. The study found the difference in price between comparable homes of size and location is currently at an average of 6%.

Listing on your own leaves you to manage the entire transaction yourself. Why do that when you can hire an agent without additional cost?

Bottom Line

Before you decide to take on the challenge of selling your house on your own, let’s get together to discuss your needs.

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Top 4 Renovations for the Greatest Return on Investment!

Top 4 Renovations for the Greatest Return on Investment! [INFOGRAPHIC] | MyKCM

Some Highlights:

  • If you are planning on listing your house for sale this year, these four home improvement projects will net you the most Return on Investment (ROI).
  • Minor renovations can go a long way toward improving the quality of your everyday life and/or impressing potential buyers.
  • Whether you plan to stay in your house for a long time or just a few years, it’s smart to know which home renovations add the most value.
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Young First-Time Buyers Are Saving for Their Dream Homes

Young First-Time Buyers Are Saving for Their Dream Homes | MyKCM

Young buyers (Millennials & Gen Z) have waited longer than previous generations to enter the housing market for their first home. However, this hasn’t stopped them from dreaming about the home they will eventually buy. Many spend hours searching listings and building Pinterest boards of their favorite home features.

According to a survey from Open Listings, 70% of single renters are more likely to spend their Sunday nights swiping through house listings than dating profiles.

All that time window shopping has led 45% of millennials to expect the first home they buy to be their “dream home”! They are willing to wait longer, save more for a larger down payment, and are pickier about the listings they want to tour and the features that they want to see in their first home.

Waiting a little longer to buy a home than their parents or grandparents did has also helped young buyers become more established in their careers prior to making such a large purchase. Lawrence Yun, NAR’s Chief Economist, recently commented,

“Older millennials are now entering the prime earning stages of their careers, and the size and costs of homes they purchase reflect this. Their choices are falling more in line with their Gen X and boomer counterparts.”

In some areas of the country, high competition in the starter home market forces young buyers to wait longer. The extra money they save during that time opens their search to bigger, more expensive homes.

If this trend continues, older millennials will skip the starter home altogether, going straight to a trade-up or premium home instead.

Bottom Line

If you are one of the many young renters planning on buying your first home soon, let’s get together to help determine what type of home will best suit your present and future needs.

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Homes Sell Quickly Even As Inventory Improves

New data from the National Association of Realtors shows the typical for-sale property was on the market for just 26 days in April. And, though sales were down during the month, the speed with which homes are selling is evidence that buyers are interested and active in the market. Lawrence Yun, NAR’s chief economist, says homes are selling at a record pace. “What is available for sale is going under contract at a rapid pace,” Yun said. “Since NAR began tracking this data in May 2011, the median days a listing was on the market was at an all-time low in April, and the share of homes sold in less than a month was at an all-time high.” In fact, 57 percent of homes were sold in less than 30 days in April. Among the reasons homes are selling so quickly this spring is a lower-than-normal number of homes available for sale. Since buyer demand is high and the number of homes available to buy is low, homes are being sold very quickly. However, April’s numbers also show inventory was up 9.8 percent from the month before, which is an encouraging sign for hopeful home buyers. More here.

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What Is The Most Prosperous City In The US?

Prosperous is defined as “successful in material terms; flourishing financially.” And, while money isn’t everything, it’s safe to say we all want to be successful and wouldn’t mind flourishing financially. So where in the country is the best place to live if you want some prosperity? Well, the answer might surprise you. That’s because a new study – looking at factors such as population, median income, home values, share of inhabitants holding higher education degrees, poverty rate, and unemployment – determined that Odessa, Texas was the the top city for prosperity, beating out heavy hitters like Washington DC, New York, Los Angeles, Atlanta, and Charleston. So what about Odessa makes it the most prosperous city in America? Well, from 2000 to 2016, the city experienced a 38 percent spike in income growth, home values rose 91 percent, and the poverty rate dropped by 36 percent. Those are some impressive numbers but the story behind the story is that Odessa benefited from a surge in crude oil production, which boosted the city’s fortunes and lifted it to the top spot on the list. More here.