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88 FLORIDA Americans Head South e South is rising for U.S. homebuyers looking to move to another state or region, according to a state migration study by LendingTree. e study indicated that of the 12.1 percent homebuyers across the country who change states, most preferred to head south, with Florida being the No. 1 destination for the migrant population of 15 of the 50 states that were reviewed. For the study, LendingTree reviewed over 2 million new purchase mortgage loan requests for primary residences in all 50 states until November 2018 to find the most popular new locations for homeowners in each state along with the states with the highest per- centage of requests to move to other parts of the country. Of all purchase mortgage requests dur- ing the study's period, 9.1 percent were for Florida. For out-of-state movers, 12.4 percent of requests were for Florida, the study found. Texas had the highest percentage of residents looking to move within state lines with 93.4 percent of purchase mortgage requests from individuals of the Lone Star State being for properties within the state. Texas also beat Florida in the number of people from other states looking to move. Alaska topped the list of states where residents were looking to move away with only 75.2 percent looking to stay on in the state. Washington was the preferred state for residents looking to move out of Alaska. When adjusted for population size, the study found that South Carolina scored the highest as "mortgage loan requests were 52 percent greater than suggested by its share of the national population." Florida, Delaware, Georgia, and North Carolina were also among the top states when viewed by this metric. North Dakota led the states that were least popular by this metric followed by Ha- waii, Minnesota, California, and New York. Is the Housing Market Overheating? e housing market might experience a downturn, but it won't affect homeownership as much as the last housing crisis did, accord- ing to a study titled, "Where are We Now with Housing: A Report," by the Florida Atlantic University College of Business. e study investigated and compared the current status of U.S. housing at the national level with that of housing at the peak of the last cycle in July 2006. It revealed that while national housing prices were slightly over- heated, residential real estate markets were experiencing minimal downward pressure on the demand for homeownership. "Understanding where housing stands today relative to the last cycle's peak creates more informed real estate consumers and perhaps a less bumpy ride this time around as the nation enters another housing cycle peak," said Ken Johnson, the author of the study and co-author of the Beracha, Hardin & Johnson (BH&J) Buy vs. Rent Index. To compare home prices and their impact on demand, the study investigated scores of the CoreLogic Case-Shiller Home Price Index and the BH&J. It found that housing prices were at 7.3 percent above their long- term pricing trend compared to 31 percent at the peak of the last housing cycle. In terms of downward pressure on hous- ing demand, the study found that at the end of the last cycle the BH&J Index indicated an extreme downward pressure on homeowner- ship with a score of 1.00. Comparatively, this time around, the index reflected a score of 0.039 suggesting only minimal pressure on homeownership demand. "It looks like we're in for more of a very high tide, as opposed to a tsunami, as residential prices peak in this latest cycle," Johnson said. "At a minimum, we can expect flatter housing price growth. At worst, we could experience price declines slightly below the long-term pricing trend." Lakeland, Florida Poised for Growth Realtor.com predicts the number of over- all home sales to decrease by 2 percent, after years of steady climbs. eir latest report pointed out that some markets will continue to flourish despite the anticipated slowdown in the real estate market. It predicts the number of overall home sales to decrease by 2 percent after a steady rise for several years. Home prices, on the other hand, will rise by a mere 2.2 percent on account of rising mortgage interest rates and tax changes pric- ing more buyers out of the market, the report stated. Despite this kind of deceleration, the report indicated that strong local economies and affordability are the main reasons for the increased influx of new residents in some of the metros. "e diversity of these top markets suggests that real estate can thrive anywhere there is a strong local economy," said Danielle Hale, Chief Economist of Realtor.com. Lakeland, Florida topped the list with a median list price of $224,950. e sales growth is at 5 percent while price growth is projected at 7.4 percent. Lesser commute time to larger cities and cheaper home prices compared to Tampa's median $261,362 or Orlando's $299,950, makes it a very fea- Florida Minority Certified Business MIAMI-DADE & BROWARD COUNTIES 786-499-6994 www.REOPitStop.com Luis@ContinentalRealtors.com RESNET ID: 106089 | Equator ID: 272261 Luis F. Guzman Broker/Owner Lakeland, Florida, was ranked first out of 10 housing markets poised for growth in 2019, according to realtor.com's "Top 10 Superstar Metropolitan Areas" list, with homes that had a median price of $161,757. KNOW THIS

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