Housing Matters Podcast

California home sales have declined for the second time in four months compared to the previous year, as elevated interest rates and ongoing economic uncertainty continue to impact the market. The condo market, which previously provided more opportunities for first-time buyers, has also softened due to worsening affordability. Although the tariff situation has slightly improved, the recent U.S. credit downgrade has adversely affected rates, likely causing the housing market to stall in the coming months.

In this episode, C.A.R. economists break down the latest Federal Reserve decision to keep interest rates unchanged. They also discuss the first negative economic growth in three years, the impact of rising tariffs, home price fundamentals, and the latest update on insurance.

In this episode, C.A.R. economists break down the latest trends in inflation, retail activity, and the consumer sentiment. They also discuss the March home sales report, the latest housing affordability by ethnicity index, and the outlook for the spring homebuying season.

In this episode, C.A.R. economists discuss the latest concerns about the economy and the odds of a recession. We dive into how some of the macroeconomic variables are affecting everything from retail sales slowing down to consumer confidence hitting its lowest point since 2021. And while inflation appears to be ok for now, recently implemented tariffs could create headwinds in coming months. Interest rates may also remain elevated as the the Fed suggests that they could "wait-and-see" for a little longer.

C.A.R. economists discuss the aftermath of the wildfires in LA County, the economic/regulatory implications of the new administration to the market, and the latest trend on inflation.

C.A.R. research discusses the latest housing market update as well as the final fed rate cut for 2024 and how that will affect the forecast for 2025.

The outcome of the election has an impact on the housing market, but the net effect in the short term is yet to be determined. Inflation will likely be stickier next year than previously thought since after the election, while the economy could grow faster in 2025. While interest rates are expected to decline more slowly than what was projected before, the market outlook is murkier than a month ago as the election results created more uncertainty for the market in the path ahead.

With mortgage rates expected to moderate further in 2025, California homes sales and price are projected to increase as buyers and sellers return to the market. Join C.A.R. economists as they discuss the latest economic update and look ahead at potential market changes in the upcoming year.

The fed funds rate was lowered by half a percentage point for the first time since 2020. The central bank's latest move and its plan on future rate reductions will benefit homebuyers and home sellers in the coming months. With mortgage rates remaining near the lowest level in two years, housing activity could pick up in the fall.

California home sales bounced back to the highest level in five months in July, while more listings became available. With mortgage rates reaching the lowest level since May 2023, the market should see more sales and an increase in housing supply in the second half of the year. Meanwhile, the economy is expected to slow but continues to see positive growth in Q3.

California home sales bounced back to the highest level in five months in July, while more listings became available. With mortgage rates reaching the lowest level since May 2023, the market should see more sales and an increase in housing supply in the second half of the year. Meanwhile, the economy is expected to slow but continues to see positive growth in Q3.

With inflation easing more sustainably in the last couple months, interest rates have been trending down to the lowest level in the past five months. Despite having a softer-than-expected first half in 2024, the housing market should improve in sales in the next six months. Join C.A.R. economists in this episode as they discuss the latest trend in the market and the impact of recent developments in the economy.

The Federal Reserve decided to keep rates unchanged in the latest FOMC meeting but signaled that at least one rate cut is still on the table. Meanwhile, rate volatility has stabilized over the past couple weeks and more properties continued to be listed on the market. Home sales in the California housing market remain soft but are expected to improve in coming months.

Active listings at the state level continue to climb, with new for-sale properties rising for the fourth straight month in April. Housing supply remained tight, however, and continued to put upward pressure on prices. The statewide median price surged more than 10% from last year and set a new record high in April. As the market continues to speculate on the next Fed's rate move and its outlook on future rate cuts, interest rates will likely remain volatile in the coming month.

With interest rates rising further in 2023, housing affordability continued to deteriorate for all ethnic groups last year. While the affordability gaps had narrowed between groups, they remained wide. The disparity will not likely improve much this year, as home prices are expected to increase moderately in 2024.

Join C.A.R. economists as they discuss the Fed's rate movement, the latest market report, and recent updates on the economy. Fed officials still expect rates to come down by 75 basis points this year, despite sticky inflation in the past few months. Meanwhile, the market continues to do better as home sales grew month-over-month and year-over-year. Inventory and affordability will remain issues in coming months, but consumer sentiment is gradually improving.

California had a good start in 2024 with both housing supply and buyer demand showing signs of improvement in January. The housing market could face headwinds in the coming months though, as mortgage rates remain on the rising trend. Inflation is expected to stabilize throughout the next 12 months, however, and rates could ease again starting in the second quarter.

The housing market had a tough year in 2023 as tight supply and high costs of borrowing continued to create challenges for buyers and sellers. With rates declining to a 7-month low late last year, the market began to see an increase in activity at the start of the year, but the improvement is expected to be gradual. Rising insurance costs and uncertainty in the commercial real estate sector will remain some of the market risks in 2024.

Mortgage rates have shown improvements lately as Fed's officials softened their tones after their latest FOMC meeting and suggested that the Central Bank could be done with rate hikes. Meanwhile, sales of existing homes in California dipped again by double-digits on a year-over-year basis in October as costs of borrowing remained elevated while supply continued to be tight.

Home sales in California declined further last month as buyers and sellers continued to struggle with the high-mortgage-interest rate landscape not seen in the last two decades. The sharp increase in the past few weeks was due primarily to the Fed's announcement at their latest meeting that rates will be kept “higher for longer”, which dashed market participants' hope for more significant rate cuts in 2024. As investors continue to assess the economic outlook and the uncertainty brought on by the geopolitical tensions in the Middle East, there will be more volatility on rates in the short term.

With Fed policymakers seeing rates staying higher for longer, what will the economy and the housing market look like in 2024? What could some of the risks be in the upcoming year? Tune in to listen to our economists discuss the latest California economic and market outlook.

Join C.A.R. economists as they discuss mortgage rates continuing to trend up and has reached the highest level in 21 years. With costs of borrowing staying high, housing affordability dipped in the second quarter and will likely stay low for the rest of the year. Homebuyers, while still very interested in buying, are facing challenges on both the affordability side and the supply side. Home sales have been affected as such and will remain soft in coming months.

Join C.A.R. economists as they discuss the latest Fed rate hike in July of 2023. This is contextualized against a backdrop of an economy that remains increasing resilient to external pressures and higher interest rates with jobs and GDP still running ahead of expectations. This has also translated through to stronger home sales and rising prices in California as demand continues to outstrip supply.

Join C.A.R. economists as they discuss the results of the June 2023 Federal Reserve meeting and the expected impact on mortgage rates. They also discuss the broader macroeconomic environment including the likelihood of the U.S. dipping into recession and an update on the California housing market in May.

Join C.A.R. economists as they discuss the latest developments on the debt ceiling debate moving through congress, the implications for interest rates, and the broader macro-economic context as the Fed prepares to meet again in June for another rate decision.

Macro Check-In and Market Update (Episode 105) by CALIFORNIA ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS and the CENTER FOR CALIFORNIA REAL ESTATE

Join C.A.R. economists as they discuss the recent failure of several California-based banks as the technology sector begins to lose momentum. They also discuss how recent events could impact future Fed rate decisions and the short and medium term trajectory for mortgage rates before turning to recent developments in the market data and what we can expect as the Spring homebuying season kicks into gear.

Join C.A.R. economists as they discuss the latest housing market data for January 2023 along with a round up of the macroeconomic news on inflation, interest rates, retail sales, and the labor market.

C.A.R. economists discuss what's in store for 2023 on the basis of the year end housing market numbers as well as the most recent economic data on consumers, inflation, interest rates, what the Federal Reserve has planned, and how this will affect the California housing market this year.

C.A.R. economists discuss the implications of the latest Fed Funds Rate increase and how the housing market has changed from the beginning of 2022 to the end. Broader macro economic trends are analyzed through the lens of what it means for buyers and sellers and how real estate agents can set themselves up for success by embracing consumers and ensuring that they are the local market experts.

Tune in to Episode 100 of the Housing Matters Podcast with your hosts Jordan Levine, VP and Chief Economist at C.A.R., and Oscar Wei, Deputy Chief Economist at C.A.R. as they discuss the newly released 2023 Housing Market Forecast! Need some visual to go along with the podcast? Check out the poweproint presentation used in this year's REImagine! forecast session at https://www.car.org/en/marketdata/marketforecast

C.A.R. Economists discuss the upcoming Fed rate hike and how that will play out in the economy. They also recap the latest housing market statistics for California from the weekly data running through the end of August. Although the market shift remains in full swing, the pace of declines have decelerated after the initial surge in interest rates and pending sales suggest a modest improvement in the coming months.

C.A.R. economists discuss the prospect a 75bps increase of the Federal Reserve's target interest rate. Home sales continue to fall and the market has become much less competitive. At the same time, inventory is rising and many would-be buyers have a better chance having their offers accepted or having sellers that are more willing to negotiate. Episode 98 concludes with a brief summary of our latest forecast to see where this is all headed in 2023.

C.A.R. economists discuss the latest housing market data in the wake of the Federal Reserve's largest single rate-hike in decades. The number of home sales dipped to its lowest levels in years outside of the initial shutdown at the start of the pandemic, and competition has begun to ease from the near-frenzy levels of the past two years. There is also heightened economic risks as consumers face increasing headwinds, and businesses become less confident about 2023. How this all affects housing in California is covered in Episode 97.

C.A.R. economists are joined by new CEO of the California Association of REALTORS, John Sebree to discuss all things housing and real estate as well as John's personal journey from working in Congress to his home in organized real estate. He provides an optimistic, but pragmatic perspective on the future of the industry and the market.

C.A.R. economists discuss the latest macroeconomic trends including the ongoing battle to tame inflation, the consequent effects on interest rates and housing in California, and the outlook for the market in the next few months as the Fed remains poised to increase their target rate further and the economy saw GDP decline for the first time since the recovery began.

Join C.A.R. economists as they discuss the implications of the first interest rate hike by the Federal Reserve in several years on mortgage rates, the housing market, and the broader economy including the additional context of rising geopolitical tension and increasing uncertainty.

Join C.A.R. economists as they interview two real estate pros: former C.A.R. SVP & Chief Economist Leslie Appleton-Young and former Chief Economist of N.A.R. and Florida Association of REALTORS(R), John Tuccillo who share timely insights about consumer demand, the macro economy, where rates, prices, and housing supply is headed as well as some valuable words of wisdom on the broader real estate industry.

C.A.R. economists discuss the most recent data on the economy and the housing market including a conversation about jobs, wages, interest rates, and inflation. The annual data for 2021 is put into perspective now that the year end tallies have been finalized and the ever-present supply constraint is highlighted as the key headwind to rising sales volumes this year.

C.A.R. economists recap the latest market numbers and provide a summary of current economic conditions as we head into the end of the year. This includes a discussion of jobs, interest rates, the current surge in inflation, and the recently released results from the 2021 Annual Housing Market Survey, that details just how strong buyer demand was this year. They also provide us with an updated projection for 2021 sales and prices as well as a market forecast for 2022.

C.A.R. Deputy Chief Economist Oscar Wei is joined by N.A.R.'s Head of Consumer Insights, Dr. Jessica Lautz to discuss recent consumer behavior and trends in the wake of the pandemic.

Tune in to Episode 89 of the Housing Matters Podcast with your hosts Jordan Levine, VP and Chief Economist at C.A.R., and Oscar Wei, Deputy Chief Economist at C.A.R. as they discuss the newly released 2022 Housing Market Forecast! Also make sure to check out our other economic sessions from this year's REimagine Expo at: https://www.reimagineexpo.org/

Tune in to Episode 88 of the Housing Matters Podcast with your hosts Jordan Levine, VP and Chief Economist at C.A.R., and Oscar Wei, Deputy Chief Economist at C.A.R. as they discuss the newly released August 2021 housing market and economic data. We hope to see you at REimagine October 5-7 for our Econ Panel and 2022 Housing Market Forecast presentation! Register at: https://www.reimagineexpo.org/

The CA housing market moderated in July: Sales were down year-over-year for the first time in 13 months, the statewide median price did not set a record high for the first time in the last 5 months (although it remains above $800k) and active listings are at their highest level since Oct 2020. Join Jordan and Oscar as they discuss the market moderation, Q2 affordability and the recent COVID case numbers.

Join us for a check-in on the California economy and housing market as we enter the second half of 2021.

Record breaking data in May, reopening of the state - what does it all mean for the California housing market? Tune in as C.A.R. economists dive deep into the data, California's reopening, and the impact to the economy and housing market.

This episode dives into the record-setting April 2021 California housing market statistics, plus their impact on affordability, consumers, and the economy.

This month, C.A.R. economists Jordan Levine and Oscar Wei walk you through the March 2021 housing data, ongoing growth in sales and price, bubble speculation and some of the proposals in the new infrastructure bill.

Tune in as our favorite economists walk you through the latest housing market numbers, as well as the short and long-term effects of the economic downturn.

C.A.R.'s Chief Economist and Deputy Chief Economist guide you through the first housing market numbers of 2021 (hint: the market did surprisingly well in January) and dive deeper into recently released housing affordability data in California.

Interest rates, Coronavirus cases, political changes – how has the California Housing Market adjusted to changes throughout the winter?