Are you planning to buy a home in 2022? If so, and you’re just starting your research to figure out if it will be a good time to buy or to simply learn about the housing market, you’ve landed on the right page! I’ve gathered some information on what you’ve got to know about buying a home in 2022.
Could Be Easier to Buy a Home in 2022
The housing market has been crazy in 2021 for several factors: high demand, low supply, and high prices, to name a few. While some parts of the country don’t see much movement, others have seen a high influx of people moving there. All of these factors have caused the housing market to go into a frenzy!
1. Supply of Homes for Sale
There are some indications that buying a home in 2022 could be easier than it has been in 2021. The main one being that the supply of homes available for purchase is starting to increase again. With a bigger supply, the calmer the market could become.
Let me give you a brief overview of the housing inventory from the past few years. From about the end of 2016 to the beginning of 2020, the amount of available homes for sale has averaged between 1450,000 to about 1025,000. This range fluctuates, depending on the time of year, but the trend had stayed steady until 2020.
2020 wreaked havoc on a lot of things and the housing market was no exception. The year started off seemingly normal, but right around April 2020, there was a steep steady decline that lasted until about April 2021.
The good news is that starting in May 2021, there has been an increase in homes for sale and has continued to follow the normal ebb and flow of housing inventory from pre-2020. Though things are starting to trend upwards, the supply is still much lower than in years past. As of September 2021, the number of available homes for sale had only risen to about 650,000, which is still over 22% down from September 2020.
2. Demand of Homes for Sale
I’ve touched on the supply of homes for sale, so it’s only fitting that I brief you on the demand of homes for sale too. We mentioned the market has been in a frenzy. Any one simple factor can cause the market to turn, but there have been multiple factors that has caused the changes we’ve seen over the past couple of years.
Home inventory has dropped, but demand has also risen. One reason is the dip in mortgage interest rates, which has allowed people to afford the payments they may not have been able to before. There have also been reasons that have nothing to do with real estate directly. These reasons still caused a ripple effect, which affected the housing market. This ripple effect has caused an influx of people to move and buy somewhere else, as well as big companies relocating its headquarters, and also other people moving into this country.
3. The Price of Homes are Rising
This isn’t exactly a positive, but it’s imperative to mention. The prices of homes are rising. Real estate prices can vary, but overall prices are continuing to rise. This is caused by both: low supply and high demand. Like I mentioned above, the inventory is rising, but it’s still a lot lower than in years past. Because the demand is also high, whenever a property becomes available, oftentimes it will sell over list price, which drives the market value up.
Will the market come back down? It’s always a possibility, but the trend doesn’t appear to be happening right now.
Should you buy a home in 2022?
People will always buy and sell real estate regardless if the market is calm, crazy, up or down. When you buy, depends on your personal circumstances to see if it’s the right time for you. Ultimately, knowing what’s going on the market will help you make an informed decision on if, when, and how you should buy a home. It’s not a one-size-fits-all type of answer. If you’re ready to buy a home in 2022, I say go for it!
