Merry Christmas! As 2022 comes to an end, I wish you and your family the happiest of holidays, and hope you are doing well. As my gift to you, here is the latest housing market information, mortgage rate trends, and the homeowner tip/info of the month! 

Local Market Reports

The Shelby County Market

As expected around the holiday season each year, less families are looking to move on top of holiday travel and logistics. This is why we see less homes coming on the market, and more homes are staying on the market longer. This trend should flip after the New Year's Holiday. For the great news, average home values are still holding strong, and even increasing by 2.2%! New homes on the market are down 35.8% in December.

The Jefferson County Market

The Jefferson County Market is holding to a similar trend as the Shelby County Market. Less homes came on the market in December, and the homes on the market are sitting 20% longer. Surprisingly, the average home value dropped 6.4% in December, which could also reflect sellers reducing prices to move inventory quicker in the slower December month. December saw 40% less new homes come on the market.

Mortgage Rate Information

Great news! Mortgage rates continue to drop this month. The average 30 year mortgage rate this week was 6.42%, down from 7% in November. The average 15 year note was 5.68% this week. Experts project a trend towards a ballpark 5% interest rate for a 30 year mortgage in the first quarter of 2023. Rates have you worried? Ask me how to get your rate 2% lower the first year and 1% lower the second year (2/1 Buydown Option)! For the full rate article from Freddiemac, click:  Freddie Mac Mortgage Report

Homeowner Tips and Trends

The market shift from a seller's market to a buyer's market comes almost full-swing after the last two years of bidding wars and seller dominance. Buyers are gaining more ground as we see a return of more contract contingencies, seller-paid closing costs, and other negotiation tools. See the full article here: You May Have More Negotiation Power When you Buy a Home Today

In Case You Missed It: Have You Downloaded My New and Free Home Search / Valuation App?

Earlier this month, I launched a new FREE app for my friends and clients! This app lets you search for homes for sale, get an estimate on the value of your current home, and track your home equity. The best news, my app won't sell your private contact data to vendors, agents, and marketers that pay to get your email and phone number from Realtor.com, Zillow, Google, etc. Browse with privacy and confidence. This is just one of many ways that I am working hard to make your home buying / selling experience the best it can be! Download it today by clicking the link here: Download Shane's Free Real Estate App

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Are you or someone you know ready to take the next steps towards buying or selling a home? Please contact me today, it would be my pleasure to be your REALTOR. 

 Merry Christmas and Happy New Year 

-Shane

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