Signs of a Strong Housing Market Still to Come in 2020

New home sales were at their best since 2007 in this year’s report. According to the Commerce Department data, building permits have had the biggest increase in 12 years. The National Association of Realtors reported a 6.2% increase in prices of existing homes nationwide.

National Association of Homebuilders CEO Jerry Howard supports that the housing market is strong and will continue to stay strong in the new year. He advises there is no evidence of recession.

“I’ve been all over the country and builders are really, really gung-ho,” said Howard.

There are many supporting factors that indicate a strong market. Mortgage rates remain around 3.66% with solid lending trends. Mortgage originations are expected to hit over $2 trillion, the best year since 2007. The Federal Reserve has been cutting rates this year and the central bank has reduced rates a total of three times since July 2019.

Redfin CEO Glenn Kelman agrees with the data’s findings. “The Fed is going to keep rates low, the mortgage markets have priced that in, and that’s going to keep demand strong,” says Kelman.

This is good news after Benn Steil and Benjamin Della Rocca of the nonpartisan think tank Council on Foreign Relations predicted a recession before the Election in 2020. Data collected shows an exact opposite of their prediction and will continue to push for a strong economy in days to come.

Click Here For the Source of the Information.

Ballet Apetrei Presents, The Nutcracker, December 13 & 14, 2019

Lora Sturm and Christo McMaster will star in the production live in Mandeville.

The Nutcracker

Mandeville High School Theater
1 Skipper Dr
Mandeville, LA 70471

December 13 & 14, 2019

Friday at 7:00 PM and Saturday at 2:00 PM and 7:00 PM

Tickets $10-$35


Click Here for More Information.

History and Holly Home Tour, December 8, 2019

Presented by the Covington Heritage Foundation.

History and Holly Home Tour

Historic Downtown Covington (Begins at Bogue Falaya Hall)
317 N. Jefferson Ave.
Covington, LA 70433

December 8, 2019

2:30pm – 5pm

Price: $20

Click Here for More Information.

Annual Christmas in the Country, December 1 – 21, 2019

Make holiday memories in Covington.
Christmas in the Country

Throughout historic downtown Covington
Covington, LA 70433

December 1 – 21, 2019

Recurring Recurring weekly on Monday, Wednesday, Friday, Saturday
Time: Varies; most shops open 9am-5pm Monday – Saturday, some Sundays. Restaurant and nightclub hours vary.

Free event!

Click Here for More Information!

 

Accelerated Home Prices Reported in September

The S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller U.S. National Home Price Index reports a rise in the home prices across the nation from a 3.1% gain in August to a 3.2% annual gain in September 2019.

With low mortgage rates and the largest generation aging into the prime home-buying years, the housing market is solid and should stay strong going forward into 2020. Mortgage rates on the 30-year fixed has remained around 3.6% to 4% since June 2019. The housing market is at a critical low in the supply of homes for sale bumping up house prices.

Although the 10-City Composite annual did not increase from 1.5%, the 20-City Composite rose to 2.1% annually in September 2019. Home prices rose the most in the Sun Belt.

The cities which saw the highest annual gains in the 20-City Composite were Phoenix, Arizona with a 6.0% increase, Charlotte, North Carolina with a 4.6% increase and Tampa, Florida with a 4.5% increase.

“After a long period of decelerating price increases, it’s notable that in September both the national and 20-city composite indices rose at a higher rate than in August, while the 10-city index’s September rise matched its August performance,” Craig J. Lazzara, managing director and global head of index investment strategy at S&P Dow Jones Indices, wrote in a release. “It is, of course, too soon to say whether this month marks an end to the deceleration or is merely a pause in the longer-term trend.”

Click Here For the Source of the Information.

Live Nativity: A Mandeville Christmas 2019, December 13 – 15, 2019

Costumed cast in a live setting with animals depicting Jesus of Nazareth’s birth in Mandeville.

Live Nativity: A Mandeville Christmas 2019

Mandeville’s First Baptist Church
1895 Hwy 190
Mandeville, LA 70448

December 13 – 15, 2019

7pm

Free event.


Click Here for More Information.