I’ve had a few good conversations this week that all seemed to circle around the same question:

What’s actually happening in housing right now?

Here are three things I found that were interesting to me, and why they matter. 

Home Equity Took a Small Step Back. It’s Still Solid.

ATTOM released a new national home equity report, and yes, there was a slight dip.

The percentage of homeowners considered “equity-rich” came down a bit from the previous quarter. 

Equity levels are still very strong historically, far stronger than pre-pandemic years. This isn’t equity collapsing. It’s equity normalizing after a few years of rapid appreciation.

The key takeaways here are. Homeownership is still one of the best choices to build personal wealth. We are not seeing major distress signals pointing to a crash. Sellers have options to use their equity for more wealth building, by downsizing, cashing out and re-investing, etc. There is a long list.

This is the kind of market where strategy matters more than timing and you don't always have to sell your home to use your equity to make more money. 

Redfin’s Super Bowl Giveaway 

If you caught the Super Bowl buzz, Redfin made waves by announcing a $1M home giveaway tied to a scavenger hunt inside their app.

On the surface, it’s flashy. Fun. Easy to joke about.

Redfin didn’t do this to give away one house. They did it to get millions of people to use thier app, and hopeully their agents to buy a home.

Even in a slower market, curiosity hasn’t gone anywhere. Buyer demand is at an all time high right now. What a marketing play by RedFin! 

The Fed Chair Conversation 

The other big topic floating around this week is President Trump’s nomination of a new Federal Reserve Chair to replace Jerome Powell when his term ends. Kevin Warsh is the nominee. 

Whether you follow politics closely or not, this matters because it shapes future monetary policy, not tomorrow’s rates.

Markets are watching closely. Will rate cuts come sooner and is that good for housing or bad? I think too much too soon will increase the affordability problem we have right now. How much independence will the Fed maintain? How will inflation control balance with economic growth? 

One important thing to remember:
No Fed Chair acts alone. Policy still comes from a committee, not a single voice.

So while headlines move fast, actual changes tend to be slower and more measured. Hopefully. 

This Market is Challenging 

It's true, it's challenging for Home Owners. It's also challenging for Aspiring Buyers. It's also challenging for Agents. I saw a statistic last week that said 40% of contracts ended up terminating in the last month instead of closing and making happy buyers, sellers and agents. That's rough! 

This just re-inforces the fact that it does matter who you choose to help you buy, sell or invest. 

Contact me through the website to interview me for the job. 

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