The mood was good and confidence was raised at the 8th annual Governor’s Conference on Housing, where over 400 housing professionals gathered on Thursday, October 11th, to assess the condition of the Delaware housing market.
“The recovery is under way,” said David Crowe, senior economist with the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB). “It may take a while, but it’s inevitable”- he added.
On a national level, August did show some gains. Existing home sales increased 9% compared to August 2011, new home sales rose 28% and housing starts were up 29%, according to Keith Wardrip, a researcher with the Federal Reserve bank of Philadelphia.
As for Delaware, there is no doubt that the housing market at the state level is improving, and there are some particular advantages being enjoyed because of the rebound taking place. Wardrip noted that the median household income in Delaware is at $58,800, while the medium income at the national level is only at $50,500. In addition, 70% of the households in the state of Delaware own their homes, while nationally, only 55% are homeowners, said Wardrip.
Delaware does draw many out-of-state buyers who have been seeking new homes for sale in a state where they can escape high property taxes. This could partly explain the housing market rebound being seen in the state. In addition, the Delaware real estate market has often proven to be the most affordable in the Northeast, and the no sales tax in Delaware is a huge incentive and big affordability factor that causes many new home buyers to look for Fenwick Island homes. With fixed-rate mortgages now near historic lows, the thought of becoming a homeowner in a new beach home community, such as Bayside, is becoming more and more appealing to the prospective home buyer.
