At this week’s Coldwell Banker office meeting in San Rafael our office manager showed us a chart from a survey with the concerns from Realtors in the top 20 metropolitan areas around the country. The number one concern should come as no surprise, property insurability. Here in Marin County the most imminent concern in that regard is wildfire insurance. Flood insurance is also an issue as the FEMA flood maps keep expanding. When I became a Realtor in 2004 my mentor told me half the homes in Marin are in flood zones. The other half are built on cliffs. It was an exaggeration of course, but not entirely off the mark.
The second main concern was high interest rates. The high interest rates were killing the market last year, but fortunately for the past four consecutive weeks they’ve gone down. Just in time for spring, this is a great time to buy with rates back in the mid 6’s! As the days get warmer, we are seeing more listings and more buyers in the market. One other thing that stood out from that survey, 90% of Realtors think 2025 is going to be a better year than 2024. In terms of sales volume, 2024 was pretty abysmal so it better be.
The third top concern of Realtors around the country was President Trump, his administration and how he might adversely effect the market. Please don’t shoot the messenger, Trump is not one of my top concerns when it comes to the real estate market. I’ve got other concerns regarding 45/47, like the recent tanking of the stock market, but I digress. As a real estate investor, I don’t see 45/47 wanting to see the real estate market go down. He has consistently pushed for lower mortgage interest rates, which would increase demand and be great for sellers and property values. However, of all the presidential powers he possesses, determining interest rates is not one of them, yet. Then again, that won’t stop any venomous verbal attacks on the Fed. Even if the general economy tanks, where does the money flow? Into safe havens, like real estate.
Insurability and interest rate are valid concerns in the real estate market. Trump is not. At least not currently. There is the possibility of unintended consequences for the economy from layoffs, deportations, tariffs and downsized government contracts in the private sector. There is potential collateral damage in the real estate market. We will see...
*** Thank you for reading my blog! If you or any of your friends and family ever have any real estate questions, please feel free to contact me at andyfalk2112@yahoo.com or 415-250-8025. I’m always happy to help!