Talking Points …
- The CALIFORNIA ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®’ “2014 California Housing Market Forecast” projects sales to increase by 3.2 percent next year to reach 444,000 units, up from the projected 2013 sales figure of 430,300 homes sold.
- C.A.R.’s forecast also projects the average 30-year fixed mortgage interest rate to rise to 5.3 percent but will still remain at historically low levels. The California median home price is forecast to increase 6 percent to $432,800 in 2014, following a projected 28 percent increase in 2013 to $408,600.
- The U.S. Gross Domestic Product is expected to grow 2.8 percent in 2014, after a projected gain of 1.8 percent in 2013, according to C.A.R.’s forecast. With nonfarm job growth of 1.9 percent in California, the state’s unemployment rate should decrease to 8.3 percent in 2014 from 9 percent in 2013 and 10.5 percent in 2012.