Mary Carmen Walker, Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices Florida Network Realty

05/10/2023

04/19/2023

03/06/2023

11/28/2022

🎄 SAVE THE DATE
Bring your own blankets and chairs and come enjoy the 5th and final Moonlight Movie of the year! December 2, Elf, will be shown at Seawalk Pavillion at 8pm. Hot chocolate and concessions will be available for purchase.

11/24/2022

Wishing you a day filled with family, friends, love and thanks.

11/22/2022

11/20/2022

Deck The Chairs has returned as your choice for Jacksonville’s best holiday event!

What is Deck The Chairs? According to the creators, an event that promotes arts and arts education. It might not be surprising to learn that the community-supported exhibit features decorated lifeguard chairs.

It’s mission statement: “Deck The Chairs believes our Beaches is a beacon of light. We work throughout the year on Jax Beach Deck The Chairs creating new ways to interact and inspire young minds. We hope to be a catalyst sparking other communities in collaborative public/private creative partnerships that lift our next generation.”

Deck The Chairs opens on Wednesday, November 23.

11/16/2022

Now that the end of 2022 is within sight, you may be wondering what’s going to happen in the housing market next year and what that may mean if you’re thinking about buying a home. Here’s a look at the latest expert insights on both mortgage rates and home prices so you can make your best move possible.

Mortgage Rates Will Continue To Respond to Inflation - There’s no doubt mortgage rates have skyrocketed this year as the market responded to high inflation. The increases we’ve seen were fast and dramatic, and the average 30-year fixed mortgage rate even surpassed 7% at the end of last month.

n their latest quarterly report, Freddie Mac explains just how fast the climb in rates has been:

“Just one year ago, rates were under 3%. This means that while mortgage rates are not as high as they were in the 80’s, they have more than doubled in the past year. Mortgage rates have never doubled in a year before.”

Because we’re in unprecedented territory, it’s hard to say with certainty where mortgage rates will go from here. Projecting the future of mortgage rates is far from an exact science, but experts do agree that, moving forward, mortgage rates will continue to respond to inflation. If inflation stays high, mortgage rates likely will too.

Home Price Changes Will Vary by Market - As buyer demand has eased this year in response to those higher mortgage rates, home prices have moderated in many markets too. In terms of the forecast for next year, expert projections are mixed. The general consensus is home price appreciation will vary by local market, with more significant changes happening in overheated areas. As Mark Fleming, Chief Economist at First American, says:

“House price appreciation has slowed in all 50 markets we track, but the deceleration is generally more dramatic in areas that experienced the strongest peak appreciation rates.”

Basically, some areas may still see slight price growth while others may see slight price declines. It all depends on other factors at play in that local market, like the balance between supply and demand.

11/11/2022

Thank you!

11/11/2022

11/09/2022

As the housing market cools in response to the dramatic rise in mortgage rates, home price appreciation is cooling as well. And if you’re following along with headlines in the media, you’re probably seeing a wide range of opinions calling for everything from falling home prices to ongoing appreciation.

While opinions differ, the most likely outcome is we’ll fall somewhere in the middle of slight appreciation and slight depreciation.

The graph shows the most up-to-date forecasts from five experts in the housing industry. The three blue bars represent experts calling for ongoing home price appreciation, just at a more moderate rate than recent years. The red bars on the graph are experts calling for home price depreciation.

While there isn’t a clear consensus, if you take the average (shown in green) of all five of these forecasts, the most likely outcome is, nationally, home price appreciation will be fairly flat next year.

Basically, experts are divided on what’s ahead for 2023. Home prices will likely depreciate slightly in some markets and will continue to gain ground in others. It all depends on the conditions in your local market, like how overheated that market was in recent years, current inventory levels, buyer demand, and more.

The good news is home prices are expected to return to more normal levels of appreciation rather quickly. The latest forecast from Wells Fargo shows that, while they feel prices will fall in 2023, they think prices will recover and net positive in 2024. That forecast calls for 3.1% appreciation in 2024, which is a number much more in line with the long-term average of 4% annual appreciation.

And the Home Price Expectation Survey (HPES) from Pulsenomics, a poll of over one hundred industry experts, also calls for ongoing appreciation of roughly 2.6 to 4% from 2024-2026. This goes to show, even if prices decline slightly next year, it’s not expected to be a lasting trend.

Don’t let fear or uncertainty change your plans. If you’re unsure about where prices are headed or how to make sense of what’s going on in today’s housing market, reach out to a local real estate professional for the guidance you need each step of the way.