Homebuilder Sentiment Shocker and What it Means For The Housing Market

An increase in mortgage applications, homebuilder sentiment rising for the first time in a year, and the need for more single-family housing completions are today’s topics as Byron Lazine and Tom Toole discuss the latest news on the U.S. housing market.

January 20, 2023
BAM Staff
Knowledge Brokers

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On this week’s episode of the Knowledge Brokers Podcast, Byron Lazine and Tom Toole begin by discussing the increase in mortgage applications noted in the latest MBA Weekly Survey.

Next up was some good news about homebuilder sentiment, which saw an increase in January—the first in a year—thanks to the recent drop in mortgage rates.

Then the conversation turned to total housing inventory and why we need more single-family housing completions for buyers to enjoy the affordability that has eluded them over the past several months.

Finally, they discussed what agents should be telling their clients—and how best to articulate the advantages of selling now rather than waiting until spring.

Click on any of the timestamps below to watch:

00:00–00:25 Intro

00:25 Optimism about this week’s housing market news

00:53 Mortgage applications are up 28% from one week earlier

04:13 Millennial homebuyers

05:47 Having a multiple-offer mindset

10:23 Byron’s biggest worry right now

15:36 Prices are going to drop, but only because…

15:57 Tom’s expectations regarding the Fed

21:32 Creating an ad to show sellers why now is a good time to sell

24:27 Increase in inventory: “We need to double up again.”

28:58 The biggest issue right now is the supply of single-family homes

34:25 What agents should be telling sellers (Hint: NOT “Wait ‘till the spring”)

35:50 The changing playbook and the need to track changes on a daily/weekly basis

Click here to watch the full episode.

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About the Author

BAM Staff

Real estate may be all about location, location, location, but we know that content is king! That's why we have an army of talented writers behind the scenes, crafting posts like this one to help you navigate the ins and outs of the industry.

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