Extended time at home is shaping how people live every day, what they want from their home and where they want to live well beyond this current season.
National Market
In 2021, here are a few trends shaping up for the housing market: Interest rates are expected to remain low but increase gradually. Average home prices will rise. Home inventory will remain low, despite plenty of new construction. Here's what experts are predicting for buyers, sellers, renters, and new construction in 2021.
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New York City
As per NYC, while the rest of the country has been really hot, we have really seen a mixed bag in 2020. Manhattan inventory accumulated, while the rest of the boroughs kept moving at a normal pace.
Sales
2021 is starting out in a good place, with December and January seeing massive improvements from prior months, and around 30% (or more) in contract activity compared to the previous year. So we can see the market going from a buyer's market to a more balanced market, even though we might not see the actual prices reach pre-pandemic levels for several months, or even into 2022.
Rentals
And when it comes to rentals, the official number of vacancies is somewhere between 7 and 9%. At Thrive we believe the real number is closer to 20% and most of the vacancies are not officially on the market, but are still in the landlord's books and costing money. The rental market will take a bit longer to come back than the sales market, and we believe that 2021 will still be a market that will favor the tenant.
What will happen when the eviction moratorium ends? When foreclosures start in these buildings that are half empty and landlords can't pay their debts? That is really anyone's guess. We hope the vaccine and the "end of COVID" bring people back to the office, and back to the rentals, in the meantime, those who are in NY and are thinking about making a move, this is the time to get a great deal! Just make sure you are working with someone who knows where that 20% shadow inventory is.