Chuck Barberini Real Estate

  Six out of 10 Gen Zers worry they might never become homeowners. That’s according to a survey by Clever Real Estate, which highlights the biggest barriers to homeownership for Gen Z as well as their top concerns and priorities. Because while 92% of Gen Z respondents say owning a home is important to them, 96% prioritize other goals over homeownership, including stable employment, building a career, and starting a family. Just 18% of prospective  Gen Z  homebuyers believe they can afford a home. And 33% of Gen Z home owners  have struggled to pay their mortgage. There is such a thing as sacrificing  too much  to become a homeowner. And with 21% of Gen Z homeowners saying they didn’t have sufficient knowledge of the homebuying process, it’s painfully clear too many agents out there are dropping the ball when it comes to educating their buyer clients and working on their behalf. Read on for some more highlights of the survey to gain a better understanding of...

  A Phil Hall Op-Ed:   For a man who seems to have an opinion about everything, former President Donald Trump has been uncharacteristically quiet about the state of the U.S. housing market. His campaign has not offered any proposals on addressing the evaporation of affordability in housing, nor have any ideas been put forth regarding the challenges facing builders in creating new housing. Indeed, the Trump re-election website has a page called “Issues” which fails to include housing among the topics impacting Americans. If we are to have any clue on what a second Trump term would look like for the housing market, we would need to consider the first Trump go-round at the Executive Branch. Of course, the biggest mistake Trump made was naming Jerome Powell as the chairman of the Federal Reserve – he immediately began to criticize Powell’s decision making and even publicly toyed with firing him. But to his credit, Trump named Mark A. Calabria as director of the Federal Housing Fin...

Read My July 12th News Letter The median U.S. home sale price hit a record high for the ninth consecutive week, according to Redfin’s latest report. The four-week period ending July 7 saw the median sale price climb to $397,482, marking a 4.7% year-over-year increase.  Although this marks the largest rise in over four months, there are signs that home price growth may start to slow soon. Let’s look at the data. SIGNS OF SLOWING PRICE GROWTH Despite higher mortgage rates, sale prices have remained elevated. This trend is largely attributed to historically low inventory levels, which continue to push prices upward. Yet data for home sale prices are lagging since they reflect deals from a month or two earlier. Redfin reported that while home prices continue to beat records each week, there are emerging signs that price growth could decelerate soon. One sign is that the typical home is now selling for 0.4% less than its asking price, a notable shift from homes selling  above ...

  The biggest stumbling block to selling a home for Gen Xers and Boomers could be rooted in their emotions.  Over the next 10 years, an estimated $68 trillion in wealth will change hands during what’s being called “The Great Wealth Transfer” from Boomers to younger generations. And a majority of these estates will include a home.  But when it comes to letting go of a home they’ve lived in for a decade-plus, sentimental attachment can get in the way, prolonging the moving timeline and, in turn, impacting the overall housing market as well as the Great Wealth Transfer.  And that raises a question: Are 55+ home sellers and buyers putting an emotional return on investment (EROI) ahead of price before selling and making their next move? That’s why Opendoor commissioned a survey to better understand the motives and emotions of Gen X and Boomer home sellers and buyers.  Here’s what they found.  AMERICANS AGED 55+ ARE EMOTIONALLY ATTACHED TO THEIR HOMES More than s...