Builder Partnerships President Predicts Sharp Rise In Housing Sales In 2017

Charles C. Shinn, the president of the Builder Partnerships consulting group, says that housing is doing well and will continue to thrive next year.

Shinn predicts that housing sales will be 15 to 20 percent better than 2016. He bases his projection on criteria such as current and historic economic trends, real estate reports, and manufacturing production levels.

Shinn says that November 2016 was a very strong month, and that an influx of sales left no standing inventory. People who want to buy a home will be looking for a newly built one.

The one caveat is mortgage interest rates, which have crept up a half percent in the last few weeks. The increase has driven consumers to buy now, in anticipation of the Federal Reserve raising interest rates at its meeting on Dec. 15. The last time the Fed raised rates, it affected housing sales for six months. Even with that, builders will end up with a very strong year. Builders will go into 2017 with a backlog and will have a strong first quarter.

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