DSNews delivers stories, ideas, links, companies, people, events, and videos impacting the mortgage default servicing industry.
Issue link: http://digital.dsnews.com/i/1518663
MortgagePoint » Your Trusted Source for Mortgage Banking and Servicing News 76 April 2024 J O U R N A L sense of chaos. If you can, use a storage unit to hold non-essential items." The added financial pressure caused by the current economic situation might put some off moving; but for others, it appears to be motivating them to take the plunge. In fact, 476,050,700 Google searches were made in the United States for real estate listings during 2023. While the driving factor for this in- terest is unclear, it could reflect tenants' desire for cheaper rent as landlords hike up fees or the urge to get onto the proper- ty ladder. Whatever the reason, those in Colorado hope to move home more than anywhere else. The state averaged 14,414 searches per 100,000 residents, which is 21% higher than the national average of 11,869 searches per 100,000 residents. Florida is the second state where potential movers are up against the most competition, with 13,985 searches per 100,000 people—18% higher than the national average. In third is Arizona, which is still 16% higher at 13,782 searches per 100,000 people. States People Are Looking to Avoid Meanwhile, Alaska residents are the least likely to have to rush into a deal to avoid losing it to other interested renters or buyers, with only 6,025 searches per 100,000 people, which is 49% lower than the national average. Behind Alaska, the next state where people are least looking to move is Ha- waii, as people search for real estate web- sites 46% less than the average person, with 6,438 searches per 100,000 people. Closely following in third is Mis- sissippi with 6,671 monthly searches— which is 44% below the national average. Interestingly, U.S. searches for hous- ing sites peaked in March last year at 44,698,660, which is 13% higher than the monthly average of 39,670,892 searches. This indicates this is the best time for sellers to list their property, as demand for new homes could rise again this year. In 2023, Americans showed the least interest in moving throughout December, with searches dropping 20% below the average to 31,662,739 monthly searches. "Now that we are a couple of months into the New Year, it's likely those that were home hunting beforehand will return to it—and many others may start looking too if they set moving as a goal for 2024," Gordon said. "If the trend spotted last year repeats itself, people are going to increase their research for their next potential home again next month. As interest surges, so will competition, so prospective renters and buyers may have to act fast if they want to secure a property." YOY HOME PRICE GROWTH HITS HIGHEST PROJECTED RATE I n a new report, CoreLogic has an- nounced the CoreLogic Home Price Index (HPI) and HPI Forecast for January 2024. January was the highest annual rate of increase in home prices, but growth is predicted to slow down in the upcoming months and drop to 2.6% by early 2025. The nation's long-standing housing afford- ability issue is being made worse by both rising mortgage rates and a lack of avail- able inventory, which primarily impacts regions with historically lower earnings. "U.S. annual home price growth strengthened to 5.8% in January 2024," "If the trend spotted last year repeats itself, people are going to increase their research for their next potential home again next month. As interest surges, so will competition, so prospective renters and buyers may have to act fast if they want to secure a property." —Chuck Gordon, CEO, Storable