February 2022 home price update

A multitude of buyers who were priced out of the 2021 real estate market are hoping for a better result in 2022. 

Last year’s real estate frenzy has caused quite a bit of buyer fatigue and sometimes even remorse. According to a Bankrate survey, millennials, in particular, said the cost of homeownership was more than they expected. A record-low 26% of consumers currently think it’s a good time to buy a house, according to Fannie Mae’s Home Purchase Sentiment Index at the end of 2021.

Though demand remains robust, most consumers are apprehensive about buying a home at present prices. Unfortunately, affordability will continue to be a challenge in 2022. Most industry experts agree that even if home prices level off, they probably won’t decline.  

With all this in mind, coming off 2021’s market, tons of buyers are holding their breath and waiting to see what 2022 brings. At Brownell Team, we see house “sales” prices continuing their climb albeit at a much slower pace.  However, and good news for buyers, we see house “list” prices coming down a bit in 2022.  The gap is just too wide.

Though it sounds like all doom and gloom, housing was one of the bright spots in the economy last year. Existing home sales increased in November 2021 to the highest seasonally adjusted rate since January 2021, so not all buyers are getting cold feet. Home prices have skyrocketed as buyers compete for a limited number of houses on the market.

In general, recent home sales have been stronger than anticipated, and we still have way more buyers than homes to sell to them. The market is especially competitive at lower price points because buyers with limited cash can more easily be outbid by investors or cash buyers.

However, homeownership is still more affordable than renting in most areas of the U.S., especially in Las Vegas. Much of this affordability is due to the historically low mortgage rates of the past few years. Remember, the longer you own, the better returns you’ll see.

So, what does all this mean? Though home prices and affordability are something to keep an eye on, it’s still a great time to both buy and sell. If you’re considering selling, now is the ideal time because prices are likely reaching their peaks, and buyers won’t continue to pay these prices forever. 

And with interest rates projected to increase overall by the end of the year, this will further dampen buyers’ abilities to keep paying these higher prices.

If you’re curious about what your home is worth in today’s market, you can use this home value calculator, which takes into account recent local Las Vegas sales:

Enter your address here to find out what your home is currently worth

That calculator is an estimate to get you started. If you’d like a more accurate home price estimation, please reach out to us via phone at 702-376-9789 or email us. We’d also love to help if you have any questions concerning real estate here in Greater Las Vegas.