Golden Realty

07/10/2025

Did you know there are more households with pets than children? And these beloved pets are a driver of economic activity, namely, home buying. About one-fifth of recent home buyers considered their pet when choosing a neighborhood, a share that increases among unmarried couples and single women buyers. Let’s dive in!

According to the U.S. Census, the share of families with children under the age of 18 living in their home has continued to decline. The share of families with children under the age of 18 in 2024 stood at 39%, down from 52% in 1950. This is likely due to two reasons: Birth rates, overall, have been declining, and a large share of baby boomer households have already seen their children leave the nest.

While the number of children in U.S. households has declined in the last 20 years, there has been a rise in pet ownership. According to the American Pet Products Association, 71% of American households own a pet. This is up from 56% in 1988. Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, Americans adopted pets for companionship and entertainment; however, this trend has since eased from its recent peak. The American Pet Product Association reports that dogs and cats are the most common household pets.

06/04/2025

The National Association of REALTORS® reported that home prices continued to rise in the first quarter of 2025. The national median price rose 3.4%, year over year, to $402,300.

03/19/2025

No, the Fed did not cut rates today. Why Is the Fed hesitant to cut rates?

Uncertainty seems to be spreading through the economy, and the Fed is seemingly not immune.

Some of President Donald Trump's proposed economic policies have stoked uncertainty, undermined confidence among business leaders and consumers, sent stocks tumbling, and raised fears of a possible economic downturn.

The Fed is reluctant to act until there is more clarity on which of President Trump's tariff threats will be implemented and the impact those tariffs will have on inflation and economic growth.

02/24/2025

Existing Home Sales Decreased 4.9% in January, But Increased Year-Over-Year for Four Consecutive Months.

Key Highlights-

Existing-home sales slid 4.9% in January to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.08 million. However, sales rose 2.0% from one year ago, the fourth straight monthly year-over-year increase.
The median existing-home sales price advanced 4.8% from January 2024 to $396,900, the 19th consecutive month of year-over-year price increases.
The inventory of unsold existing homes grew 3.5% from the prior month to 1.18 million at the end of January, or the equivalent of 3.5 months' supply at the current monthly sales pace.

01/29/2025

According to Freddie Mac, the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 6.96% as of January 23. That’s down from 7.04% one week ago but up from 6.69% one year ago.

01/08/2025

Pending Home Sales Moved Up 2.2% in November, Fourth Straight Month of Increases.

Key Highlights
-Pending home sales in November increased 2.2%.
-Compared to one month ago, pending sales rose in the Midwest, South and West but declined in the Northeast.
-Year-over-year, contract signings grew in all four U.S. regions, with the West showing the biggest jump.

11/21/2024

NAR Chief Economist Lawrence Yun Forecasts 9% Increase in Home Sales for 2025 and 13% for 2026, with Mortgage Rates Stabilizing Near 6%
The worst of the housing inventory shortage is coming to an end, mortgage rates are stabilizing and job additions are continuing.

09/19/2024

Fed goes big with interest rate cut in a bid to head off an economic slowdown.

The Federal Reserve said Wednesday it was lowering its key interest rate by half a percentage point, an unusually aggressive move designed to cushion the economy from a further slowdown.

The central bank noted job gains had slowed while inflation had made further progress toward its 2% goal.

At a follow-up news conference, Fed Chair Jay Powell said the labor market and the economy in general remain in "solid shape."

By making the larger cut, he said, "our intention is to keep it there."

08/09/2024

US mortgage rates plummeted this week after weaker-than-expected employment data raised the odds of the Federal Reserve cutting interest rates next month. It’s a big step in the right direction for America’s notoriously unaffordable housing market.

The standard 30-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 6.47% this week, mortgage financing giant Freddie Mac said Thursday. That’s down substantially from last week’s average of 6.73% and marks the lowest level since May 2023. This week’s drop was the biggest since late December.

Mortgage rates have steadily fallen over the past several weeks since reaching a 2024 peak of 7.22% in early May. Rates are down from a two-decade high seen late last year.

“The decline in mortgage rates does increase prospective homebuyers’ purchasing power and should begin to pique their interest in making a move,” said Sam Khater, Freddie Mac’s chief economist, in a release.

“Additionally, this drop in rates is already providing some existing homeowners the opportunity to refinance, with the refinance share of market mortgage applications reaching nearly 42 percent, the highest since March 2022.”

06/11/2024

4 Types Of Wall Cracks You Should Know About:

1.) Hairline cracks-Level of urgency low
2.) Vertical cracks-Level of urgency low to moderate
3.) Horizontal cracks-Level of urgency high
4.) Diagonal cracks-Level of urgency high

To read the full story check out my blog at www.goldensold.com

05/16/2024

Housing starts in April bounced back slightly after a large decline in the previous month. The latest monthly gain of 5.7%, following a 17% fall in March, was led by more activity in the South region. The total annualized rate of 1.36 million is insufficient overall. The country needs around 1.6 million or higher for a few years to truly bring about a balance in the housing sector.

On a positive note, albeit only for the short term, the completion of homes is rising due to past months' higher housing starts. The 1.62 million housing unit completions in April was the second-highest monthly figure in 15 years. Expect apartment vacancy rates to trend higher, rents to slow down, and more homebuyers able to buy newly constructed homes. However, given the recent declines in housing starts, home completions will steadily show declines in about six months.

The housing shortage is not going away. The laws of supply and demand tell us that home prices are on firm ground and could even reaccelerate in the future unless more is done to boost supply.

04/17/2024

This is no surprise to everyone who lives in this beautiful City.

I grew up in Eugene, Oregon, and although my experiences are mostly limited to this region, I truly believe I couldn't have chosen a better place to grow up. Eugene, often overshadowed by larger