Last month our trivia question was: Of the approximately 53 million outstanding home mortgages, 32.33 million of them are under what fixed mortgage rate? The correct answer was 4% (congratulations to Stephen), and interestingly enough, his winning answer was also the lowest of all the answers we received.
Why does this matter? If you have a 30 year fix rate loan at 4% for $300,000, your monthly principle and interest payment is $1,432.25. If you got a loan for the same amount, but had a 7% interest rate, your monthly payment is now $1,995.91. If you want to keep your payment roughly the same you could only finance $215,000 (1,430.40 monthly payment at 7%). As you can see, buyers have lost a tremendous amount of buying power, and this goes a long way to explain why the number of people looking to move has gone down.
It isn’t all doom and gloom in the real estate world, especially if you are a seller. The number of homes selling continues to fall, but the median sales price is up over 7% when comparing September 2022 to September 2023. Here is the chart from the Real Estate Information Network (REIN, our local MLS).
While interest rates play an important role, in our view the most important metric is the month’s supply of inventory. The month’s supply of inventory is calculated by dividing the total number of homes listed for sale by the number of homes that go under contract. For example, if 100 homes are listed and 10 go under contract, that month’s supply of inventory would be 10 months. A balanced market is between 5 and 7 months. In September 2023 it was 1.76 up from 1.68 for August 2023. It was 1.54 in July 2023 and 1.39 last August.
We are going to use the month’s supply of inventory for this month’s trivia question: What month and year was the month’s supply of inventory higher than 1.76? As always, you can reply back to this email with your answers.
If you are thinking about buying or selling, it is in your best interest to go ahead and give us a call (757-726-7653 for Lee, 757-434-9084 for Harry) or reply back to this email, and we will be happy to talk through your individual situation. We love real estate and are always happy to talk.
Don’t forget, we manage rental properties and can help with your property management needs as well!
Check out the Rental Management section of our website, here.
What’s Happening in Suffolk
Touch a Truck & Trick or Treat
Bring your little goblins and ghouls to the parking lot behind the Courthouse (on N. Commerce Street) on Saturday, October 28, 2023, for Touch a Truck & Trick or Treat! The event begins at 11am an…
We’re here for the BOO’S! Join Nansemond Brewing Station for their Annual Halloween Bash! They’re kicking off the spooky season with a scary delicious CANDY Flight! From 2-8pm, ther…
Friday Night Frights at the Center: The Pope’s Exorcist
The Suffolk Division of Tourism wants to give you the fright of your life as they present a series of horror films at the Suffolk Center for Cultural Arts. On Friday, October 27, 2023, join us for The…
Get ready for a spooktacular time at our Halloween Event, Fright Night! Suffolk Parks & Recreation invites you to join us for a ghoulishly delightful evening filled with games, candy, crafts, cont…
Get ready for the annual Boos & Booze Halloween Party, filled with costumes, thrilling games, and wickedly good music! $25 per person (tickets on EventBrite) 2 drink tickets – Orange Crush, well…
Victorian Suffolk: Dying To Be There, A Guided Discovery of Cedar Hill Cemetery
This 75-minute walking tour explores the hidden meanings buried in Suffolk’s Historic Cedar Hill Cemetery. The tour will feature Victorian-era symbolism, burial practices, funerary industries, and m…
Downtown Suffolk has got you covered for Halloween this year! Join in the fun of the Fall Festival, taking place Sunday, October 29, 2023, from 2-6pm, in the Downtown corridor. Free and open to the pu…
An official Virginia Civil War Trail site, Cedar Hill Cemetery has long been an attraction for history buffs and even walking groups. The Suffolk Division of Tourism offers a guided stroll through the…
A hair-raising encounter with the spirited side of Suffolk. Follow a costumed guide through the shadows of historic Main Street discovering stories, legends and “unexplained occurrences” b…
Last week the Federal Reserve Board did not raise the Federal Funds Rate but it hinted that it will do so later this year. After the announcement, the stock market went down and the 30-year mortgage rate went up. Last month we evaluated the impact of the current 30-year mortgage rates (above 7%) on the local market (read that newsletter here). Because it takes 30-60 days to close on homes under contract, we concluded that real evidence would not be available for a couple of months.
Here is the chart from the Real Estate Information Network (REIN, our local MLS).
As you can see, while the number of active listings (available homes for sale) is lower, the number of settled (closed) sales is down more. This is causing the month’s supply of inventory to creep up to 1.68 for August 2023. It was 1.54 in July 2023 and 1.39 last August. The months’ supply of inventory is calculated by dividing the total number of homes listed for sale by the number of homes that go under contract. For example, if 100 homes are listed and 10 go under contract, that months’ supply of inventory would be 10 months. A balanced market is between 5 and 7 months. Despite the higher interest rates, and the somewhat slowing market, the number of homes on the market would need to almost double twice before we get into a balanced market.
Our title this month is also our trivia question. Of the approximately 53 million outstanding home mortgages, 32.33 million of them are under what fixed mortgage rate? Reply back to this email with your guess, and we will give you the answer next month.
If you are thinking about buying or selling, it is in your best interest to go ahead and give us a call (757-726-7653 for Lee, 757-434-9084 for Harry) or reply back to this email, and we will be happy to talk through your individual situation. We love real estate and are always happy to talk.
Don’t forget, we also manage rental properties and can help with your property management needs as well.
Cross Realty is honored to announce that Harry Lee Cross III was awarded the 2023 Good Neighbor Award this week by Virginia REALTORS®.
The Virginia REALTORS® Good Neighbor Award recognizes REALTOR® members who make a positive impact on their community and gifts the organization through which they volunteer time and talents. This annual award seeks to highlight, inspire, and perpetuate the individual contributions within the real estate industry toward improving the lives of citizens in Virginia.
What’s Happening in Suffolk
Fall Exhibit: Chesapeake Bay Watercolorists
The Suffolk Art Gallery is proud to present their Fall 2023 Exhibit, featuring work from members of the Chesapeake Bay Watercolorists, a membership-based organization that brings local artists and art…
Celebrate Suffolk’s shining young stars and support local charities, at the annual Suffolk Peanut Fest Queen’s Banquet and Fashions, on Thursday, September 28, 2023, at the Hilton Garden I…
At the Alzheimer’s Association Walk to End Alzheimer’s®, we’re fighting for a different future. For families facing the disease today. For more time. For treatments. This year’…
Join Baker Acres Farm for its Opening Day Celebration, on Saturday, September 30, 2023, from 10am-6pm. Enjoy family fun including a corn maze with scavenger hunt, pre-picked and u-pick pumpkins, mums …
Kick off the Annual Suffolk Peanut Fest with a festive parade through downtown historic Suffolk, beginning at 10am, on Saturday, September 30, 2023. The parade stages in the Lakeside neighborhood and…
The 15th Annual Mutt Strut Festival will be held at Bennett’s Creek Park on Saturday, September 30, 2023, from 12-6pm, and will showcase exciting pet-related activities and fun for the entire fa…
Known for its fun family activities, Suffolk Peanut Fest offers concerts, amusement rides, contests and competitions, a demolition derby, peanut cup race, motorcycle rally, fireworks and much more. Combine all of these great activities with local and national entertainment and you have a weekend full of good times!
Suffolk Peanut Fest is scheduled for October 5-8, 2023.
The Market offers an array of fresh local produce, beef, poultry, eggs, honey, baked goods, pickled vegetables, jams, plants and flowers, handmade soaps, candles, garden and farm décor, jewelry, and other artisan crafts.
Over the last few weeks, the national 30-year mortgage rates are averaging over 7%. As you can see in the chart to the right, other than a couple of weeks in November 2022, rates have not been this high in almost two decades. The chart is from the St. Louis Federal Reserve Bank showing the 30-year mortgage average rate since 2002.
The big question is, are rates now high enough to slow the market down? I don’t believe that we will have a firm answer for several months. It takes 30 to 60 days to close on a house once it is under contract, so October will be the soonest we have real data to analyze.
Complicating matters is the fact that, in a normal market, August is typically one of the slowest times of year for our local market. It feels a little slower right now, but is that a result of increased rates or is it just a normal August? The good news is that houses are still selling, even with the higher rates and the August factor. As you can see in this chart courtesy of the Real Estate Information Network, we are clearly still in a seller’s market, as evidenced by our current inventory levels.
(REIN our local MLS):
It will be interesting to see what happens this fall but our big-picture view hasn’t changed. Our supply of local houses for sale should easily outstrip demand and keep us in a seller’s market for the next several months. If you are thinking about selling, it is in your best interest to go ahead and give us a call (757-726-7653 for Lee, 757-434-9084 for Harry) or reply back to this email, and we will be happy to talk through your individual situation. We love real estate and are always happy to talk.
Kick back at the Holland Ball Field and watch the 2023 box-office smash, The Super Mario Bros. Movie. Concessions will be available and the movie will begin promptly at 8pm. This event is free and ope…
The City of Suffolk is gearing up for the third annual Suffolk Plein Air Festival, September 5-9, 2023. Plein Air Artists from the around the country and internationally have applied to participate. .
Take a bite out of the annual Taste of Suffolk Street Festival! This event site will stretch down Main Street from 11am-5pm (with an after party beginning at 4:30pm), starting on Finney Avenue and cov…
The Suffolk Art Gallery is proud to present their Fall 2023 Exhibit, featuring work from members of the Chesapeake Bay Watercolorists, a membership-based organization that brings local artists and art…
Join Triple T Sports Center for a family fun day celebrating the sport of gymnastics! This event is free and open to the public. Event includes open gym (obstacle course, foam block pit, trampolines, …
At our patrons request …VINYL RADIO triumphantly returns to the Suffolk Center’s historic Birdsong Theater, with a wash of vocal power and a righteous regard for the great rock-n-roll music of t…
Known for its fun family activities, Suffolk Peanut Fest offers concerts, amusement rides, contests and competitions, a demolition derby, peanut cup race, motorcycle rally, fireworks and much more. Combine all of these great activities with local and national entertainment and you have a weekend full of good times!
Suffolk Peanut Fest is scheduled for October 5-8, 2023.
The Market offers an array of fresh local produce, beef, poultry, eggs, honey, baked goods, pickled vegetables, jams, plants and flowers, handmade soaps, candles, garden and farm décor, jewelry, and other artisan crafts.
We traveled to Oregon, the home state of Jean Cross (Harry’s mom, Lee’s Grandmother), and found it much hotter than we remembered! The weather is being blamed on a heat dome, and after seeing this chart, courtesy of the Real Estate Information Network (REIN our local MLS), it looks like our local market is in a heat dome as well:
Don’t let the double-digit decreases in the active listings, pending sales, and settled sales fool you, the median sales price went up almost 6% when comparing June 2022 to June 2023. The median sales price increased almost 3% from May 2023 ($335,000) to June 2023 ($345,000).
According to the weather forecast, the heat dome will be leaving and temperatures should return to normal in the Northwest part of our country. However, we don’t see the real estate market changing nearly as fast or as easily as the wind blowing in a different direction. The month’s supply of inventory of homes for sale is still below 2 months and until the supply of homes increases, our local real estate market will remain a seller’s market. Additionally, we are still finding the local rental market to be even stronger than the sales market!
Of course, every situation is different, so give us a call (757-726-7653 for Lee, 757-434-9084 for Harry) or reply back to this email, and we will be happy to talk through your individual situation. We love real estate and are always happy to talk.
Journeys #2, an exhibit of paintings by Russell Schools, Jr., winner of the 2022 Annual Juried Exhibition, will be on display from July 22 – August 18, 2023. Many of Schools’ works include his int…
It’s the return of the popular American Girl Program, featuring Kira Bailey, on Saturday, July 29, 2023, at Riddick’s Folly House Museum! American Girl Kira Bailey is living her dream: Cud…
Decoys Seafood presents the 1st Annual Summer Bash, on Saturday, July 29, 2023, from 1-5pm! FREE ADMISSION. Ages 21+. * Small Business Vendors * Food & Drink Specials * Live Music * Games …
The 2023 TGIF Summer Concert Series continues at Bennett’s Creek Park on Friday, August 4, 2023! The park will open at 6pm and the band will take the stage at 6:30pm. Music from Tailgate Down wi…
Dress in your finest and come out to Suffolk Public Library’s 4th annual community dance. Dance the evening away with friends and family Under the Sea! Take a dance break and enjoy various indoor an…
A Blockbuster Summer at the Center: Top Gun – Maverick
Join Suffolk Tourism, in partnership with the Suffolk Center for Cultural Arts, as they proudly present A Blockbuster Summer at the Center, a series of three blockbuster adventure films. The series co…
The Market offers an array of fresh local produce, beef, poultry, eggs, honey, baked goods, pickled vegetables, jams, plants and flowers, handmade soaps, candles, garden and farm décor, jewelry, and other artisan crafts.
At the risk of sounding like a broken record, we think the sales trends for this summer are going to be very similar to the summer trends of 2021 and 2022. Fewer homes overall are being sold but those that go on the market are still selling fast. The average number of days on market is still just 11 and, most importantly, the month’s supply of inventory remains very low at 1.37. A balanced market is between 5 and 7 months, so the Hampton Roads market is still very much a seller’s market.
As you can see from the chart below, courtesy of the Real Estate Information Network (REIN our local MLS), the total number of homes that sold is over 20% fewer than last year but the median sales price has actually increased to $350,000, a record setting number for Hampton Roads. Not only are homes still selling they are, on average, selling for higher than they were last year. One significant change to note is that the terms of the contracts are starting to inch back to being a little more balanced between the sellers and buyers. Last year, it wasn’t unusual for buyer’s to completely waive home inspections, but now the majority of contracts that come across our desk have a home inspection contingency for the buyer.
As we wrote last month (click HERE to read last month’s newsletter), if you think are thinking about selling this year, now is a good time to get started. Give us a call (757-726-7653 for Lee, 757-434-9084 for Harry) or reply back to this email, and we will be happy to talk through your individual situation. We love real estate and are always happy to talk.
What’s Happening in Suffolk
Suffolk Art League’s Open Members Show 2023
Suffolk Art League invites you to the Annual Open Members Show, on exhibit from June 13 to July 14, 2023. This open show features artwork by current members of the Suffolk Art League. These artists fr…
The 2023 TGIF Summer Concert Series continues on Friday, June 23, 2023, at Constant’s Wharf Park & Marina. The park will open at 6pm and the band will take the stage at 6:30pm. Music from 50…
The Market offers an array of fresh local produce, beef, poultry, eggs, honey, baked goods, pickled vegetables, jams, plants and flowers, handmade soaps, candles, garden and farm décor, jewelry, and other artisan crafts.
Summer doesn’t officially start until the summer solstice on June 20, but I (Lee) consider the start of summer to be the week after Memorial Day. The last day of school has either already arrived or is right around the corner and the lightning bugs are flying around. Summer is my favorite time of year. It stays light longer, you don’t have a big push to get homework done or kids out the door in the morning, houses sell well, and overall I think folks are happier.
Sellers have had a lot to be happy about year round for the last few years, and this summer should keep smiles on their faces. As you can see from this chart courtesy of the Real Estate Information Network (REIN our local MLS), the number of active listings are actually down a hair, and the median sales price is up a tiny amount when comparing April 2022 to April 2023. The median sales prices was $320,000 for April 2023, the exact same amount as last month.
One interesting fact to highlight from a study we did using local market data is that the month that the most number of homes goes under contract is April. The top five months, in order, are April, June, May, July, and March. We also studied when the average seller lists their home. The top five months for listing were April, July, May, March, and June. The evidence from this study supports our belief that if you are going to sell your home this summer, it is in your best interest to go ahead and give us a call (757-726-7653 for Lee, 757-434-9084 for Harry) or reply back to this email. Don’t wait! We love real estate and will be happy to talk through your individual situation.
“Re-ART” is an invitational exhibit illustrating the importance of recycling through art. Participating artists include: Dana Adams, Gertrude Fendler, Collette Ho Mann, Sam Hundley, Maggie Kerrigan, Nancy Kinzinger, John Tobin, Sherry Willis-Littlepage, and Brenda Wright. In addition, balloon refuse animals created in conjunction with Keep Suffolk Beautiful and Suffolk Public Schools will be on display.
Join Suffolk Tourism, in partnership with the Suffolk Center for Cultural Arts, as they proudly present A Blockbuster Summer at the Center, a series of three blockbuster adventure films. The series kicks off on Sunday, June 11, 2023, when Black Panther comes to the big screen.
Suffolk Art League invites you to the Annual Open Members Show, on exhibit from June 13 to July 14, 2023. This open show features artwork by current members of the Suffolk Art League.
As a community, our stories and experiences hold a lot of power-they deserve to be shared and celebrated! Come together this Juneteenth for a community conversation where we can share and celebrate our stories and reflect on what it means to be Black in our community, the United States, and our lives as a whole.
Storytime at the Station
The popular “Storytime at the Station” series has returned to the Seaboard Station Railroad Museum! Ideal for children ages three to seven, this interactive program features a different transportation-themed book each month, which will be read aloud, followed by the opportunity to explore the museum (children must be accompanied by a parent or guardian).
The summer is here and Suffolk Parks & Recreation is ready to kick it off with the TGIF Summer Concert Series of 2023, beginning at the Constant’s Wharf Park & Marina. The park will open at 6pm and the bands will take the stage at 6:30pm.
The Market offers an array of fresh local produce, beef, poultry, eggs, honey, baked goods, pickled vegetables, jams, plants and flowers, handmade soaps, candles, garden and farm décor, jewelry, and other artisan crafts.
Do you know what makes an agent successful? We do. Cross Realty welcomes queries from those who are interested in joining our award-winning team. Call Harry today at 757-434-9084 to schedule a confidential meeting.
Specializing in properties in South Hampton Roads, Virginia.
