I love 2015

I love January of 2015, and not just January of 2015 but every January! We’ve all eaten our fair share of calories and junk food, relaxed, spent time with the family and fun Holiday traditions, but the start of the year brings with it the feel of excitement and anticipation of what the New Year may bring. It is a time to shirk off bad habits and set your life straight, with new goals and accomplishments that you will realize. One of the goals I am most excited about is to double my real estate business. According to my research and readings, this is the year we can do it. Below are the three reasons why I can.

First and foremost, according to Zillow, U.S. renters paid almost 5% more rent in 2014 than in 2013. As rent increases it only makes more sense for ‘would be renters’ to purchase a primary home, as well as for us all to pick up some investments for ourselves, finally get out of that “rat race”, and get some passive income coming in.

Secondly, Fannie and Freddie are creating more buyers. In the past recent years, buying a home has been a near impossible accomplishment unless you have 20% down, and pretty much perfect credit. Well, this is about to change in 2015. Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are both introducing mortgage programs that only require 3% down. This will bring millions of buyers back into the market searching for homes. These are the people, typically first time home buyers, who have the good credit, and good jobs, but lacked the financial aid to be able to purchase a home, which equals, wait for it….GREAT for real estate agents! According the National Association of Realtors, first-time buyers made up the smallest share for the housing market in 27 years, and the Federal Reserve found that 45% of renters delayed buying a home simply because they couldn’t afford a down payment. Thank you Fannie and Freddie!

Thirdly, rates are still at historic lows, but who knows for how long? Experts are predicting that by the end of 2015, rates could go as high as 5%, which by the way is comical to think of 5% as a high number; flashbacks of my Dad telling me of rates being in the high teens when he was in real estate coming crashing back to me. More and more people will be taking advantage of these historically low rates, and with the combination of the items above, this will be a great year for agents and home buyers in 2015.

I challenge all of us to get excited about 2015! Set goals, and then write down the steps you need to take in order to attain those goals. It is within our grasp, and we all, each of us, can make it happen. I love 2015!