Blog • Fun Facts • November 10, 2023

A Rate-Induced Pop

by Rondi duPont

The recent drop in mortgage rates triggered a measurable uptick in sales activity.

So far through the first 10 days of November, pending activity in Northern Colorado is up versus the same 10 days last year.

This is despite interest rates being higher than they were last year.

Mortgage rates just had their biggest one-week drop in over a year and buyers clearly responded.

Pending sales through November so far are up versus last year:

48% in Larimer County

20% in Weld County

Blog • Fun Facts • February 3, 2023

Equity Rich!

by Rondi duPont

Homeowners in Northern Colorado have a bunch of equity in their homes.This fact was reported by our Chief Economist Matthew Gardner at our annual Real Estate Market Forecast event.The term ‘equity rich’ is defined as someone who has at least 50% equity in their home.For example, if someone owns a home worth $500,000 and their mortgage balance is less than $250,000, they are ‘equity rich.’A whopping 57% of Larimer County homeowners and 46% of Weld County homeowners are equity rich.To put that in perspective, in 2015 there were roughly 20% of Northern Colorado homeowners who had this much equity in their homes.This level of equity is one of many reasons Northern Colorado is protected from any sort of severe market downturn resulting from an excessive amount of distressed properties hitting the market.

Blog • Fun Facts • May 6, 2022

Delinquent Indicator

by Rondi duPont

A leading indicator of the health of any real estate market is Mortgage Delinquencies.

Specifically, the percentage of mortgages which are at least 30 days delinquent can foretell the amount of distressed properties that may hit the market in the future.

The most recent research shows that only 4.11% of all loans are delinquent.

This number has dropped for seven quarters in a row and is now at its lowest level since the fourth quarter of 2019 (which was the lowest ever in 20 years).

It is worth noting that the delinquency rate in the years leading up to the housing bubble hovered between 5.5% to 6.0%.

Based on this data, the likelihood of a foreclosure surge or a glut of distressed properties hitting the market is minimal.

Blog • Fun Facts • February 18, 2022

Money at a Discount

by Rondi duPont

This week, for the first time in 32 months, mortgage rates hit 4%.

While this increase may feel painful for buyers currently looking at property, it is important to put today’s rates in perspective.

We believe we will look back a few years from now and see that a 4% rate was like buying money at a discount.

Interest rates hovered between 4.5% and 3.75% for the 8-year span of June, 2011 to June 2018

Between January, 2000 and December, 2010 rates were as high as 8.25% and as low as 5.0%.

When looking at the history of interest rates and researching economists’ forecasts, we believe it is reasonable for rates to hit 5% within the next 24 months.

When interest rates increase 1%, a buyer’s monthly payment increases 10%.

So, if rates do go to 5%, it is like an additional 10% price increase for a buyer.

Given all of this information, we believe the biggest risk to a buyer in today’s market is to wait.

Mortgage rates are likely on their way up and there is an opportunity to buy money at a discount today.

Blog • Fun Facts • Homeowners • December 10, 2021

Equity Snapshot

by Rondi duPont

CoreLogic just released their quarterly Home Equity Insights Report.

Their analysis shows U.S. homeowners with mortgages (roughly 63% of all properties) have seen their equity increase by a total of over $3.2 trillion since the third quarter of 2020, an increase of 31.1% year over year.

In the third quarter of 2021, the total number of mortgaged residential properties with negative equity decreased by 5.7% from the second quarter of 2021 to 1.2 million homes, or 2.1% of all mortgaged properties.

Negative equity means a home is worth less than the amount owed on the property.

In Colorado, the percentage of homes with negative equity is even lower than the National average at 1.5%.

Blog • Fun Facts • September 24, 2021

With a “T”

by Rondi duPont

One of the reasons we are so confident about the long-term health of the market is because of the equity that exists in peoples’ homes today.

Because there is so much equity, there are very few homeowners who are ‘underwater’ with a loan that is more than the actual value of the property.

According to the latest ‘Homeowner Equity Insights’ report from CoreLogic, only 2.3% of all homes are ‘underwater’ with negative equity.

To put that in perspective, in the fourth quarter of 2009, 26% of all mortgaged properties had negative equity.

Nationally, homeowner equity has increased by $2.9 Trillion during the last 12 months (that’s Trillion with a ‘T’)!

Locally, only 1.4% of Colorado mortgage holders have negative equity, which is one of the lowest rates in the Country.

What this all means is very, very few distressed sales and overall health in the real estate market.

Blog • Fun Facts • Mortgage • July 9, 2021

Foregone Conclusion

by Rondi duPont

For anyone worried that mortgage forbearance would eventually cause a flood of distressed properties to hit the market, there is good news this week.

The number of mortgages in forbearance continues to drop and hit its lowest point since April of 2020.

Loans in forbearance dropped 12% compared to one month ago.

It appears the growing economy is helping homeowners to exit forbearance and keep the market free of distressed properties.

Economics 101 • For Sellers • Fun Facts • March 12, 2021

Enormous Equity

by Rondi duPont

Hot off the press is the Core Logic Homeowner Equity Report. This is their quarterly look at what is happening with homeowners’ equity across the country.

Here are the staggering numbers coming out of their research:

Collectively, U.S. homeowners with mortgages have realized a $1.5 Trillion gain in equity over the last 12 months.
Only 2.8% of all mortgaged properties have negative equity meaning the home is worth less than the loan amount.
In Colorado, just 2.5% of homeowners have negative equity. For comparison, the percentage in Louisiana is 10.7%.

This research is one of many reasons why we don’t see any sort of impending housing crisis like we experienced in 2009. In the fourth quarter of 2009 for instance, 26% of all homeowners had negative equity.

Blog • Fun Facts • September 11, 2020

Forbearance Falls

by Rondi duPont

The number of loans in forbearance just fell to their lowest level since mid-April.

This is good news for the real estate market.

Less and less people are seeking payment relief on their mortgages.

The number of loans currently in forbearance stands at 7.16%.

This news coincides with the U.S. Unemployment Rate falling to it’s lowest level in 5 months as more people are getting their jobs back.

The economy has added back roughly half of the 22.2 million jobs that were lost in March and April of this year.

At Windermere Real Estate we are taking Safer at Home and Social Distancing very seriously. Our people are following our Safe Showings protocol, staying connected to their clients, and providing help wherever needed.

Blog • Fun Facts • October 22, 2019

Equity Insights

by Rondi duPont

The real estate research firm Core Logic just produced their latest Homeowner Equity Insights report.

Some interesting tidbits:

· 63% of all properties nationally have a mortgage

· Homeowners with mortgages collectively realized a $428 billion rise in equity over last year, an increase of 4.8%

· Only 3.8% of all mortgaged properties have negative equity (where the loan is greater than the value of the home)

· 10 years ago 26% of all mortgaged properties had negative equity

If you want to see even more insights about the Colorado market so that you can make really good decisions about your real estate, you are welcome to watch this complimentary webinar, just click HERE.