Real Estate Information Archive

Slow and Easy, for Now

It sure feels like the middle of summer.  It felt that way last week; it feels that way this week. There’s not much going on.

We mentioned that with the Brexit vote fading into a distant memory and the lack of any important news pending domestically or internationally, financial markets would likely go on hiatus. We even predicted that lending rates we saw last week would persist into this week and beyond.

So far, we’re right (but when predicting interest rates, you never want to do a victory lap). If you asked for a quote on a conventional 30-year mortgage last week, something between 3.5%-to-3.625% would have been a reasonable reply. That range has held this week (though we should note that the 3.375%-to-3.5% range is gaining in popularity).

We shouldn’t be too surprised rates hold current levels. Second-quarter gross domestic product (GDP), reported last Friday, wasn’t particularly encouraging. Growth posted at a 1.2% annualized rate, below most economists’ expectations.

No need to fret, though. Within the GDP report, nuggets of good news could be found, most could be found in housing. Residential investment remains robust. The segment includes new single-family structures, multifamily structures, home improvement, brokers’ commissions, and other ownership transfer costs.

Focusing on single-family-structure investment, it posted at $242 billion for the second quarter. That’s a slight drop from the first quarter, but year over year investment is up 7.3%. Current investment in single family homes is roughly 1.3% of GDP. From a historical perspective, that’s low. Annual single-family-structure investment has historically averaged between 2% and 2.5% over the past 55 years.

People frequently overlook this fact – investment drives the economy as much as spending. Residential investment should continue to do its part to drive the economy forward.

Information provided by Jessica Regan.

Search all Harrisburg PA homes for sale.

When you are buying or selling property in today's Harrisburg PA real estate market, it's important to have confidence in your real estate professional. Don’s commitment as your Harrisburg PA REALTOR® is to provide you with the specialized real estate service you deserve.

When you are an informed buyer or seller, you'll make the best decisions for the most important purchase or sale in your lifetime. That's why Don’s goal is to keep you informed on trends in Harrisburg PA real estate. With property values continuing to rise, real estate is a sound investment for now and for the future.

As a local area expert with knowledge of Harrisburg PA area communities, Don’s objective is to work diligently to assist you in meeting your real estate goals.

If you are considering buying or selling a home or would just like to have additional information about real estate in your area, please don't hesitate to call me at (717) 657-8700, complete my online form, or e-mail me at don@donroth.com.

This low-cost, all natural DIY insect repellent is easy to make and will let you linger outdoors for longer without getting swarmed. That way you can make the most of summer evenings without worrying about bug bites. 

Here's how to make it:

Supplies:

• essential oils of scents bugs hate (we like tea tree oil, rosemary oil, and citronella oil. Other great options are clove oil, lavender oil, and cinnamon oil.)
• eyedropper
• spray bottle
• warm water
• witch hazel (you can swap out with rubbing alcohol if you don’t have any witch hazel on hand)

Mix your ingredients in the spray bottle. Use the eyedropper to add up to 50 drops of your essential oils. You can use more drops if you like your scent to be a little stronger. 

Spray liberally before heading outdoors and use as needed. If you have some leftover, you can store it in the fridge. 

Information provided by BrightNest.com.

Search all Harrisburg PA homes for sale.

When you are buying or selling property in today's Harrisburg PA real estate market, it's important to have confidence in your real estate professional. Don’s commitment as your Harrisburg PA REALTOR® is to provide you with the specialized real estate service you deserve.

When you are an informed buyer or seller, you'll make the best decisions for the most important purchase or sale in your lifetime. That's why Don’s goal is to keep you informed on trends in Harrisburg PA real estate. With property values continuing to rise, real estate is a sound investment for now and for the future.

As a local area expert with knowledge of Harrisburg PA area communities, Don’s objective is to work diligently to assist you in meeting your real estate goals.

If you are considering buying or selling a home or would just like to have additional information about real estate in your area, please don't hesitate to call me at (717) 657-8700, complete my online form, or e-mail me at don@donroth.com.

We continue to see a strong future for housing, and we continue to see housing as the primary economic engine for the indefinite future.

Last week, we highlighted strong existing-home sales for June. This week, we highlight strong new-home sales for June. New-home activity is emerging as a positive surprise for the 2016 economy. New-home sales came into their own last month, posting at a higher-than-expected 592,000 units on an annualized rate. In June 2015, new-home sales posted at 472,000 on an annualized rate. Year over year, sales are up 25%.

More impressive, builders were not discounting to move inventory. The median price of a new home jumped 6.2% to $306,700 last month. Existing-home price appreciation has slowed in recent. New-home price appreciation, in contrast, appears to be picking up pace.

The good news is that pending-sales data point to rising sales in coming months. The data show a thin 0.2% rise in June, but the trend remains up. This suggests that existing-home sales, in particular, should post additional gains before summer winds down.  

Information provided by Jessica Regan.

Search all Harrisburg PA homes for sale.

When you are buying or selling property in today's Harrisburg PA real estate market, it's important to have confidence in your real estate professional. Don’s commitment as your Harrisburg PA REALTOR® is to provide you with the specialized real estate service you deserve.

When you are an informed buyer or seller, you'll make the best decisions for the most important purchase or sale in your lifetime. That's why Don’s goal is to keep you informed on trends in Harrisburg PA real estate. With property values continuing to rise, real estate is a sound investment for now and for the future.

As a local area expert with knowledge of Harrisburg PA area communities, Don’s objective is to work diligently to assist you in meeting your real estate goals.

If you are considering buying or selling a home or would just like to have additional information about real estate in your area, please don't hesitate to call me at (717) 657-8700, complete my online form, or e-mail me at don@donroth.com.

We’ll Believe it When We See It

No one was surprised.

On Wednesday, Federal Reserve officials again decided to hold the federal funds rate between 0.25% and 0.50%. Thus, they once again delayed an interest-rate hike that most everyone at the beginning of the year thought would have occurred by now.

The vote wasn’t close – nine-to-one to keep rates where they are. That said, the Fed did leave the window open for a rate increase when officials meet again in late September.  In the statement that accompanied the latest decision to maintain the status quo, the Fed noted a “strengthened” labor market and that household spending was “growing strongly.” It’s also worth noting what the Fed didn’t say. There was no mentioned of the UK Brexit vote in the statement.

Many traders parsed the Fed’s words and arrived at a similar conclusion – the window is open. Traders in fed funds rate futures contracts are now betting a 24% chance a rate increase will occur in September. These are the highest odds given since the first quarter of the year. These same traders are giving 50/50 odds that we will see at least one rate increase before the end of December.

It could happen, of course, but we remain skeptical. Traders are a notoriously schizophrenic lot (as are Fed officials). If next week’s employment report for July disappoints, the odds given for a rate increase could be reduced to single digits. If the report goes the other way, so will the odds.

We wouldn’t call the economy a one-trick pony, but let’s be honest, housing has been performing most of the tricks. Seven years after the recession officially ended, normal growth – 3% annual gross domestic product growth – remains elusive. Fed officials have all but thrown in the towel on 3% annualized growth. Without the housing recovery, we can only guess what the annual growth rate would be. Housing is more interest-rate sensitive than many other sectors of the economy. Fed officials will tread carefully on raising interest rates. No one wants to stall the one engine – housing – that’s hitting on all cylinders.

With no meaningful news to report in recent weeks, mortgage rates have drifted higher, though not egregiously so. For most borrowers, a quote around 3.5% on the conventional 30-year loan has been the norm for the past week. After the Fed’s statement on Wednesday, mortgage rates actually drifted a bit lower.

With the Brexit vote digested, the US presidential candidates settled, the lack of anything of importance pending domestically or internationally, we don’t expect to see much movement in lending rates until September (when action in financial markets usually kicks into a higher gear).  In other words, the lending rates we have now are likely the lending rates that will prevail for the next four or five weeks.

Then again, we do have two employment reports between now and Labor Day. These two reports, more than most other scheduled reports, have the potential to move lending rates one way or the other.

Information provided by Jessica Regan.

Search all Harrisburg PA homes for sale.

When you are buying or selling property in today's Harrisburg PA real estate market, it's important to have confidence in your real estate professional. Don’s commitment as your Harrisburg PA REALTOR® is to provide you with the specialized real estate service you deserve.

When you are an informed buyer or seller, you'll make the best decisions for the most important purchase or sale in your lifetime. That's why Don’s goal is to keep you informed on trends in Harrisburg PA real estate. With property values continuing to rise, real estate is a sound investment for now and for the future.

As a local area expert with knowledge of Harrisburg PA area communities, Don’s objective is to work diligently to assist you in meeting your real estate goals.

If you are considering buying or selling a home or would just like to have additional information about real estate in your area, please don't hesitate to call me at (717) 657-8700, complete my online form, or e-mail me at don@donroth.com.