We had a great deal of interesting information in the January housing report. Some of it makes complete sense, while other data is interesting. Existing Home Sales were up 6.7% in January, and it is estimated that there will be 6.5 million units sold in 2022. While forecasting sales for new construction is a bigger challenge given labor and supply chain issues, the purchase market looks strong even in the face of rising interest rates.
Many site inventory as a challenge, I believe that inventory is more of an excuse than a reason. While many believe inventory is a critical component in the market, the old thought process that a six-month supply of homes for sale as a neutral market must be reviewed as a key measure. Since we are seeing solid sales, we must accept the thought that housing doesn’t sit on the market. In fact, the average home is on the market only 19 days. This is a far cry from when homes could take six to eight months, or more, to sell. The fact that we still see multiple offers, that about 50% of the homes going to contract are seeing offers OVER asking price, and that people are still making offers time and time again shows that people want to buy homes!
I know many people get frustrated and think about giving up; but think about it for a minute, in the attempt to buy a house, people are making offers on two, three, four, or more homes they would find acceptable to buy. If they stick with it, they eventually get their offer accepted. You can’t win if you stop making offers! It’s not about inventory, it’s about making the effort! So, make sure your people are in the best possible position to make the best possible offer as soon as they see a home they like. They may not get that offer accepted, but they will find a house if they set the proper expectations and keep at it. It’s all about the effort, NOT about the inventory. You only need to buy ONE house!
There are important economic news events happening Thursday and Friday that could rattle an already shaky market, so please pay attention!
On Friday, February 25th at noon eastern time, I will be a guest on the Mortgage Coach call with Dave Savage and the rest of the Mortgage Coach Team. Please join in for the call or be sure to watch the call on YouTube® on the Mortgage Coach channel. I will post the call on my website: IMTcoaching.com and the IMT Coaching YouTube® channel as well in the coming days.
Questions or comments: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
The District of Columbia ranks first, with the largest percentage of single-person households overall - 44.75%. The District of Columbia has a large proportion of business professionals and has the lowest median age of all states. This means that there are many people living alone while they pursue their careers.
North Dakota ranks second, with 33.66% of all households being single-person households. North Dakota has seen a recent boom in population, increasing by 15.83 percent between the 2010 and 2020 census - this may be partly due to the fact that the state leads the US in job creation, attracting young professionals. These factors are likely to play a large role in the high number of single-person households.
Vermont ranks third, with 31.64% of all households being made up of single people.
Further Insights:
- The research also details the states with the highest proportion of widowers and divorcees. West Virginia, Alabama, and Arkansas have the highest proportion of widowed households - with West Virginia obtaining a percentage of 7.8% and Alabama and Arkansas both obtaining a percentage of 7.1%.
- Maine and Nevada have the joint highest proportion of divorced people - with 14% of each population being divorced.
- The top three least lonely states are; Utah, Alaska, and Hawaii. Obtaining Lonely State Scores of 0.72, 2.32, and 2.56 respectively.
The 10 states with the largest percentage of single-person households:
|
Rank |
State |
Population |
Percentage of single-person households (2019) |
Number of people widowed |
Number of people divorced |
Lonely State Score /10 |
|
1 |
District of Columbia |
714,153 |
44.75% |
4.6% |
4.8% |
5.80 |
|
2 |
North Dakota |
770,026 |
33.66% |
5.5% |
10.0% |
3.92 |
|
3 |
Vermont |
623,251 |
31.64% |
5.6% |
13.0% |
6.28 |
|
4 |
New Mexico |
2,105,005 |
31.32% |
6.0% |
13.0% |
6.60 |
|
5 |
Maine |
1,354,522 |
31.19% |
6.5% |
14.0% |
7.60 |
|
6 |
Ohio |
11,714,618 |
31.08% |
6.4% |
12.0% |
6.68 |
|
7 |
Rhode Island |
1,061,509 |
31.02% |
6.2% |
11.0% |
6.20 |
|
8 |
Illinois |
12,569,321 |
30.77% |
5.8% |
10.0% |
5.12 |
|
9 |
Montana |
1,085,004 |
30.69% |
6.1% |
12.0% |
5.60 |
|
10 |
New York |
19,299,981 |
30.50% |
5.8% |
9.0% |
4.96 |
The research, conducted by Aging in Place, analyzed various factors, from the number of single-person households to the number of people searching for friendship apps, to discover which states struggle the most with loneliness.
You can read the research in full here:
https://aginginplace.org/loneliest-states/
From buying and selling advice for consumers to money-making tips for Agents, our content, updated daily, has made Realty Times® a must-read, and see, for anyone involved in Real Estate.