The Housing Market is Positioned to Help the Economy Recover
Updated: Apr 8, 2020
Life is uncertain right now, but experts are suggesting we can take solace in the fact that even though the real estate market will face challenges this year, it may help our economy bounce back to normal sooner rather than later.
Experts are predicting a bright future for housing when the economy bounces back – and it will.
Will Unprecedented Unemployment Rates Affect Housing Sales?
Chris Herbert, Managing Director of the Joint Center for Housing Studies of Harvard University, in a post titled Responding to the Covid-19 Pandemic, said:
“Housing is a foundational element of every person’s well-being. And with nearly a fifth of US gross domestic product rooted in housing-related expenditures, it is also critical to the well-being of our broader economy.”
How has the Unemployment Rate Affected Home Sales in the Past?
It’s logical to think there would be a direct correlation between the unemployment rate and home sales: as the unemployment rate went up, home sales would go down, and when the unemployment rate went down, home sales would go up. However, research reviewing the last thirty years doesn’t show that direct relationship, as noted in the graph below. The blue and grey bars represent home sales, while the yellow line is the unemployment rate. Take a look at numbers 1 through 4:
Is This Time Different?
There is no doubt the country hasn’t seen job losses this quickly in almost one hundred years. How bad could it get? Goldman Sachs projects the unemployment rate to be 15% in the third quarter of 2020, flattening to single digits by the fourth quarter of this year, and then just over 6% percent by the fourth quarter of 2021.
Not ideal for the housing industry, but manageable.
Bottom Line
The housing market will have challenges this year. However, with the help being given to those who have lost their jobs and the fact that we’re looking at a quick recovery for the economy after we address the health problem, the housing industry should be fine in the long term.
Stay safe.
