Hello from the Idyllwild Association of Realtors®! This month we would like to relay to the latest housing news and share a few fun facts. Let’s begin in Washington D.C. and work our way home.
Federal level: The House voted Tuesday, May 14, to extend the National Flood Insurance Program through Sept. 30. The Senate must also approve the measure before May 31 — when the NFIP is set to expire — to avoid lapses in government-backed flood insurance policies. “Thanks to Realtors®, the Senate is well aware of the deadline for flood insurance,” [said] Austin Perez, senior policy representative at the National Association of Realtors®. The program provides flood insurance to more than 5 million homeowners in 22,000 communities across the country.
State level: First-time Homebuyer Tax Credit clears key committee. AB 1590 passed the Assembly Taxation and Revenue Committee last week. The California Association of Realtors sponsored AB 1590 (Rubio) to expand homeownership by helping first-time, low- and moderate-income homebuyers in disadvantaged communities with a targeted tax credit.
Local level: IAOR will hold its annual “Open House Tour” from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday Aug. 3. This event is free and open to all. About 20 homes will be held open with food, refreshments, free merchandise and more.
In other news, IAOR recently voted to donate $500 to the Idyllwild Scholarship Fund for our local kids (our future).
Fun facts from recent survey: Nearly 1 in 4 millennial homebuyers want to buy a home before they’re married. Young adults are getting married later than previous generations. In 1980, the median age for men and women at their first marriage was 24.7 and 22, respectively. In 2018, the ages increased to 29.8 and 27.8, for men and women, respectively.
But this delay in marriage isn’t deterring them from homeownership. Almost a quarter of millennials say they are postponing marriage until after they buy a home, according to LendingTree’s latest survey. Also, 27 percent of millennial buyers are postponing parenthood until they’ve achieved homeownership. Among homebuyers of all ages, nearly two in five are waiting to get a pet until after purchasing a house.
Thank you for reading. We hope you all have a fun and safe Memorial Day weekend. See you next month on “Realtor Talk.”
Johnny Wilson
IAOR President