In my neck of the woods I’ve seen a dramatic increase in home prices even as dozens of FORECLOSURES are showing up in the property listings. That seems like an indicator of totally irrational behavior by home buyers.
This lockdown is helping some and hurting others. The awesome deli in my building in downtown Louisville is shut down permanently. This could have resulted in a foreclosure on the owner’s home.
Meanwhile, I had a 3 hour daily commute, but now work from home. This saves me, after taxes -—drum roll-— almost $800 a month. That is fairly good money anywhere in the country, but in an area where that is more than many house payments, it’s a windfall.
So, WFH people are getting out of the cities, while people outside of cities are either seeing their home foreclosed on because they don’t have a source of income, or they are seeing their property values skyrocket as the city folks migrate.
I would not be buying a house right now. The time to buy is when interest rates are high. It depresses prices, and gives you the opportunity to refinance later when interest rates come down again.