Take a look at this interesting press release fromthe National Associaton of Realtors:
Housing and Economic Forecast Points to Rising Activity
WASHINGTON, May 12, 2011
Home sales are expected to stay on an uptrend through 2012, although the performance will be uneven with mortgage constraints weighing on the market, according to experts at a residential real estate forum today at the Realtors® Midyear Legislative Meetings & Trade Expo here.
Lawrence Yun, NAR chief economist, said existing-home sales have been underperforming by historical standards and will rise gradually but unevenly. “If we just hold at the first-quarter sales pace of 5.1 million, sales this year would rise 4 percent, but the remainder of the year looks better,” Yun said. “We expect 5.3 million existing-home sales this year, up from 4.9 million in 2010, with additional gains in 2012 to about 5.6 million – that’s a sustainable level given the size of our population.”
Mortgage interest rates should rise gradually to 5.5 percent by the end of the year and average 6.0 percent in 2012 – still relatively affordable by historic standards.
“A huge volume of cash sales, supported by the recovery in the stock market, show that smart money is chasing real estate. This implies that there could be a sizeable pent-up demand if mortgages become more readily accessible for qualified buyers,” Yun said. “The problem isn’t with interest rates, but with the continuation of unnecessarily tight credit standards that are keeping many creditworthy buyers from getting a loan despite extraordinarily low default rates over the past two years.”
Yun said that if credit requirements returned to normal, safe standards, home sales would be 15 to 20 percent higher. He added that some parents are buying homes with cash for their children, and offering them loans which provide better returns than bank accounts or CDs.
Yun projects the Gross Domestic Product to grow 2.5 percent this year and 2.7 percent in 2012, adding 1.5 million to 2 million jobs yearly over the next two years. The unemployment rate should decline to 8.8 percent by the end of 2011 and average 8.6 percent next year, returning to a normal level of 6 percent around 2015.
Housing starts are forecast to rise but remain below long-term trends, reaching 603,000 in 2011, up from 595,000 last year, and continue growing to 908,000 in 2012. New-home sales are seen at a record low 320,000 this year, rising to 487,000 in 2012. “A recovery in new homes will be slow because of the extra price discount in the existing home market,” Yun noted. In March, the typical new single-family home cost $53,300 more than an existing home.
Inflation appears to be relatively modest for now, with the Consumer Price Index rising 2.9 percent this year. “We’ll be closely watching the impact of fuel costs on consumer spending and inflation – that would slow economic growth, job creation and home sales,” Yun said.
Apartment rents are trending up, and are likely to rise at faster rates as vacancies decline. Following the correction in home prices, it has now become more affordable to buy in most of the country. “Twice as many renters had enough income to buy a home in 2010 in comparison with 2005, so we have a much larger pool of financially qualified renters,” Yun said. “Rising rents and excellent housing affordability conditions will encourage potential buyers who’ve been on the sidelines.”
Yun expects the median existing-home price to remain near $170,000 over the next two years, which would mark four consecutive years of essentially no meaningful price change.
Frank Nothaft, chief economist at Freddie Mac, holds similar views on the outlook. “Economic activity will accelerate this year – there will be no double dip in the economy,” he said. Nothaft is more optimistic on job growth, expecting 2.0 million to 2.5 million jobs created in 2011 with unemployment dropping to 8.4 percent by the end of the year.
Nothaft expects the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage to trend up to 5.25 percent by the end of the year, and for home sales to rise 5 percent. “National home price indices are close to a bottom and prices are likely to bottom sometime this year,” he said.
Refinancing activity in 2011 will be only half of what it was last year. “As a result, banks may become more willing to lend to home buyers,” Nothaft said.
The National Association of Realtors®, “The Voice for Real Estate,” is America’s largest trade association, representing 1.1 million members involved in all aspects of the residential and commercial real estate industries.
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Each of the homes pictured on this page are on the market at DeBordieu, an oceanfront community located just south of Pawleys Island, South Carolina featuring private golf and tennis, saltwater creek access to the ocean, a manned security gate, and luxury homes and villas surrounded by thousands of acres of wildlife and nature preserves. Click on the picture and link to listing details and a virtual tour. For more information email TroiKaz@DeBordieu.com, Call 843-455-4523, or search the website at www.DeBordieu.com.
There has never been a better time to consider a purchase at DeBordieu!
Luxury Real Estate
Quatrefoil-Symbol of Luck or Wisdom?
When is the last time you wished on a four leaf clover? Did you know you were wishing on a quatrefoil? I didn’t. In fact, before I had the privilege of listing this gorgeous, oceanfront home at 1425 DeBordieu Boulevard, I had never really heard of them, but was very impressed with how the owner, designer and architect used them throughout the interior and exterior of the home. So I did a little research and decided to share it with you.
Each of these pictures were taken at the DeBordieu home, which is just south of Pawleys Island, SC. Should you require more detailed information, CLICK HERE or on the picture of the home above and you will be linked to more pictures, details and a virtual tour. Please contact me via TroiKaz@DeBordieu.com, or call me at 843-455-4523.
Back to the quatrefoil…. according to wickipedia, the word quatrefoil etymologically means “four leaves”, and applies to general four-lobed shapes in various contexts.
In heraldic terminology, a quatrefoil is a representation of a flower with four petals, or a leaf with four leaflets (such as a four-leaf clover). It is sometimes shown “slipped”, i.e. with an attached stalk. However, it is not defined as a flower, but called a “foil”.
In architecture and traditional Christian symbolism, a quatrefoil is a symmetrical shape which forms the overall outline of four partially-overlapping circles of the same diameter.
The quatrefoil enjoyed its peak popularity during the Gothic Revival and Renaissance, but can still be seen on countless churches and cathedrals today. It is most commonly found as tracery, mainly in Gothic architecture, where a quatrefoil can often be seen at the top of a Gothic arch, sometimes with stained glass on the interior.
In art, the quatrefoil is a type of decorative framework (mainly used in engraving), consisting of an architectural quatrefoil combined with a square. Among the most famous works of art employing the quatrefoil are the bronze panels on the South Doors of the Baptistery in Florence by Andrea Pisano, the bronze panels of the North Doors of the Baptistery in Florence by Lorenzo Ghiberti, and also Filippo Brunelleschi’s famous competition entry for the same doors, The Sacrifice of Isaac) as well as “Head of an Angel” by Piero della Francesca.
In the U.S. Marine Corps, quatrefoil refers to a four-pointed decoration on the top of a warrant or commissioned Marine officer’s dress and service caps. According to tradition, the design was first used with Marine officers on sailing ships so that Marine sharpshooters in the rigging did not shoot their own officers on the deck during close-quarters gun battles (as when crews of opposing ships attempted to board each other’s ship).
An official part of U.S. Marine Corps officer uniforms since 1859, the quatrefoil was said to initially have been crossed pieces of rope sewed into officers’ caps before becoming officially mandated as a uniform item.
My favorite quatrefoil is the first one I mentioned…..the four-leaf clover, a well-known symbol of good luck. The family that ends up purchasing this unique property in this “buyers market” will not only be lucky, but very wise.
There has never been a better time to consider a purchase at DeBordieu!
Got Porch?
Screened Porches are a wonderful way to enjoy the great outdoors at DeBordieu,
Upside Down Homes at DeBordieu
People looking to really maximize their views of the ocean, creeks, marshes, lakes or the golf course at DeBordieu are choosing inverted floor plans to do so. These popular “upside-down” homes are found in every neighborhood of this private oceanfront golf community just north of Charleston, SC.
Most of the homes are built with an elevator, particularly for luggage and groceries, but if not, the architect will stack two big closets, one on top of the other, to provide an elevator shaft, should the owner decide to install one later.
me 843-455-4523, or search the website at www.DeBordieu.com.
Rub-a-dub TUB????? or Luxury Shower?
To browse the DeBordieu Website, visit www.DeBordieu.com.
It’s actually pretty amazing how many people from Charlotte, NC own 2nd homes at DeBordieu, or have moved here from Charlotte.