Real Estate News

Is It Getting More Affordable to Buy a Home? Over the past year or so, a lot of people have been talking about how tough it is to buy a home . And while there’s no arguing affordability is still tight, there are signs it’s starting to get a bit better and may improve even more throughout the year. Elijah de la Campa, Senior Economist at Redfin, says : “ We’re slowly climbing our way out of an affordability hole, but we have a long way to go. Rates have come down from their peak and are expected to fall again by the end of the year, which should make homebuying a little more affordable and incentivize buyers to come off the sidelines.” Here’s a look at the latest data for the three biggest factors that affect home affordability: mortgage rates , home prices , and wages. 1. Mortgage Rates Mortgage rates have been volatile this year – bouncing around in the upper 6% to low 7% range. That’s still quite a bit higher than where they were a couple of years ago. But there is a sliver of good news.  Despite the recent volatility, rates are still lower than they were last fall when they reached nearly 8% . On top of that, most experts still think they’ll come down some over the course of the year. A recent article from Bright MLS explains : “ Expect rates to come down in the second half of 2024 but remain above 6% this year. Even a modest drop in rates will bring both more buyers and more sellers into the market.” Any drop in rates can make a difference for you. When rates go down, you can afford the home you really want more easily because your monthly payment would be lower. 2. Home Prices The second big factor to think about is home prices . Most experts project they’ll keep going up this year, but at a more normal pace. That’s because there are more homes on the market this year, but still not enough for everyone who wants to buy one. The graph below shows the latest 2024 home price forecasts from seven different organizations :

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In June, the number of first-time homebuyers accounted for 35% of the existing homes sold, a trend that’s been building steadily throughout the year. According to the National Association of Realtors ( NAR ): “The share of first-time buyers increased in March through June—right into the heart of the pandemic period and the surge in unemployment—and is now trending higher than the 29% to 32% average in past years since 2012.” (See graph below):

Located off Cape Romano in the Ten Thousand Islands, the Dome Homes have an interesting history. If you are cruising around the Ten Thousand Islands south of Marco Island, you might see six dome houses rising out of the water approximately 300 feet offshore from Cape Romano Island. Constructed in 1980 by retired businessman Bob Lee, the houses were abandoned in 1992 and sold in 2005 to John Tosto. These homes were originally built on Morgan Island where Lee purchased four lots for his project. Construction began in 1980. Lee’s vacation home consisted of six interconnected dome structures which made up the rooms of the house. The home was 2400 square feet with three bedroom and three baths. Prior to building the Cape Romano home, Lee constructed a full scale model on land he owned in Tennessee which is still standing today. The house was designed to run on solar power. He had a rain barrel to collect and purify water. The home was completed in 1982 and was valued at 1.5 million. In 1984, Lee sold the home but ended up repossessing the structure in 1987 at which time it became the family’s primary residence staying there until 1992 when Hurricane Andrew came through and did considerable damage to the interior of the home. After Andrew, the family abandoned the home which was sold to John Tosto for $300,000. Tosto planned to renovate the home. Lee encouraged him to construct a sea wall to stop the erosion that had been eating away at the island for years. Tosto, however, had other plans. He wanted to move the house to a higher point on the island. Unfortunately, Hurricane Wilma struck the island causing more erosion and destabilizing the house’s foundation. After the storm, Tosto continued with his plans to move the structure; however, he was not able to get the needed permits for the move. In 2007, Collier County Code Enforcement ordered the demolition of the house. Despite having an engineer’s certification that the house was reparable, the board still voted for demolition. The house was never demolished but it now sits in six feet deep water. In 2015 a movement was started to move the domes to a deeper location where they could become part of the state’s underwater reef program. Unfortunately, the movement did not get funded and by 2016, the house was 180 feet offshore and was becoming a tourist attraction.  When Hurricane Irma hit in 2017,two of the domes collapsed into the water. In 2018, Collier County transferred ownership to the state. Today, the fate of the Domes is still in flux although four of them are still standing.

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