There’s a lot of talk about a recession lately and how the odds of one are rising. If you’re wondering what that means for the housing market, here’s what the data tells us. While you may remember the price crash in 2008, that’s not the norm. Looking back to 1980, home prices usually rose, and mortgage rates tended to fall. If you have questions about buying or selling a home in today’s market, let’s talk.

Cates Real Estate | 207-701-5600 | [email protected] 

#mortgagerates #crashof2008 #homeprices #recession

Headlines are talking about the inventory of new homes and how we’re back at the levels not seen since 2009. And maybe you’re reading that and thinking: oh no, here we go again. That’s because you remember the housing crash of the late 2000s and you’re worried we’re repeating the same [...]

Last year, 70% of buyers abandoned their home search – and maybe you were one of them. It makes sense. Inventory was low, prices were high, and mortgage rates were up and down like a rollercoaster. All of that made it really hard to find a home you loved – and could [...]

Recession talk is all over the news, and the odds of a recession are rising this year. And that leaves people wondering what would happen to the housing market if we do go into a [...]

HOMESTEAD EXEMPTION:

The homestead exemption reduces a home's value by up to $25,000 for property tax purposes.

To qualify, the applicant must:

• be a permanent resident of Maine 
• the home must be the applicant’s permanent residence
• applicant must have owned a home in Maine for the twelve months before applying 
• application must be filed on or before April 1 with the municipality where the property is
[...]

Spring is here, and so is the busiest season in real estate. More buyers are out looking for homes, which means more competition for you. If you want to put yourself in the best position to buy, there’s one step you can’t afford to skip, and that’s getting pre-approved for a [...]

Spring is in full swing, and the housing market is picking up along with it. And if you’ve been wondering whether now is the right time to buy or sell, here’s the inside scoop on why this spring may be a great time to make your [...]

For the past few years, it’s been mostly a seller’s market. But dynamics are shifting as the number of homes for sale grows. And that means that the market is balancing out a bit. As a result, some sellers are finding they need to be more flexible to close a deal. One strategy that can help? Offering [...]

If you took your house off the market in late 2024, you’re not the only one. Newsweek reports that data from CoreLogic and the Wall Street Journal (WSJ) says nearly 73,000 homes were pulled from the market in December alone – that's more than any other December going all the way back to 2017 (see graph below):

Whether it was because [...]

Some Highlights

• Buying a home isn’t just a transaction – it’s a journey. And, like any great adventure, having a solid roadmap makes all the difference.
• Each milestone is an achievement, from building your dream team to getting pre-approved, house hunting, and signing the papers on closing day.
• Your journey starts here.

Let’s connect so you have help every step along the way. Contact one of our Team Members at Cates Real Estate at 207-701-5600 or [...]