Many buyers and renters do not qualify for high prices

BUSINESS. I’m FRED COKER. IT’S PROBABLY NOT SURPRISING THAT AVERAGE HOME PRICES IN NEW HAMPSHIRE ARE AT AN ALL-TIME HIGH THIS MONTH, AND AVERAGE APARTMENT RENT IN NEW HAMPSHIRE IS UP BY MORE THAN A THIRD. LOOK AT THE NUMBERS IN THESE NEXT THREE CHARTS. NEW HAMPSHIRE HOME DATA AND AVERAGE SALE PRICE IN JULY, 530,000 CLOSED SALES IN JULY, DOWN 10.5% FROM 2023. AVERAGE HOUSEHOLD INCOME IS JUST 57% OF WHAT IS NEEDED TO QUALIFY FOR HOUSING AVERAGE PRICE , WITH CURRENT INTEREST RATES NOW, THE MARKET REPORT OF THE NEW HAMPSHIRE ASSOCIATION INVENTORY INCREASED 29% BY 2002 28. BUT THERE WERE 10,000 HOMES ON THE MARKET THEN ALCO, AND STUDY REPORT ON THE COST OF HOUSING IN NEW HAMPSHIRE. THEIR MONTHLY AND MONTHLY RENTS AND UTILITIES 1883, A 36% INCREASE FROM 2019. ONLY 13% OF THE TWO BEDROOM RENTAL UNITS ARE CONSIDERED AFFORDABLE. AVERAGE SALARY TO AFFORD A TWO-ROOM APARTMENT. 73,300 WITH ME TO BRIEF US ON THESE HOUSING REALITIES ARE TWO NEW HAMPSHIRE BRALTERS, JODY MAXINTYER OF COLDWELL BANKER IN CONCORD AND CURRENTLY PRESIDENT OF THE NEW HAMPSHIRE ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS AND SUSAN COLE OF THE SUSAN COLE REALTY GROUP IN LEBANON. THE PAST PRESIDENT OF THE NEW HAMPSHIRE BRELLERS’ ASSOCIATION. WELCOME TO YOU TOO. I’M GLAD TO HAVE YOU. THANK YOU. HOW DID WE GET TO THIS POINT WHERE HOUSING IS OUT OF AFFORD FOR MORE AND MORE FAMILIES AND THEN THE RENTS ARE APPROACHING MONTHLY MORTGAGE COSTS, TONY, I WOULD SAY YOU NEED TO LOOK BACK TO 2008 AND BIG A RECESSION THAT BEGAN THE END OF CONSTRUCTION IN THE STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE. IT’S GOT TOO EXPENSIVE, TOO EXPENSIVE AND THERE ARE NOT ENOUGH PEOPLE BUYING RIGHT? SO WE STOPPED BUILDING. AND AS A RESULT THE INVENTORY HAS DECREASED SINCE THEN. RIGHT. SO YES I AGREE WITH JODY. AND WHEN YOU LOOK AT THE NUMBERS, THE LACK OF MATERIALS HAS CONSTANTLY DECREASED. AND THE DEMAND FOR HOUSING HAS INCREASED. WELL, HERE THE NATIONAL WILL HOLD THIS IN FRONT OF ME. SO I CAN DO THE NUMBERS. THE NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF BROTHERS REPORTS THE CURRENT 30-YEAR FIXED MORTGAGE RATE FROM FREDDIE MAC IS 6.49% AT 6.49%, WITH 10% DOWN, THE MONTHLY MORTGAGE PAYMENT FOR A $400,000 HOME IS $2,273. DO YOU SELL A LOT OF HOMES IN THIS PRICE RANGE? WITH THIS TYPE OF MORTGAGE? WELL, I WOULD SAY EVERYTHING I LISTEN TO, WE SELL AT AN AVERAGE PRICE IN THE 530. IF WE HAVE A HOUSE THAT IS ABOUT 400, WE HAVE REALLY GOOD ACTIVITY IN THAT HOUSE. SO IN LEBANON. YES YES WE SEE THAT. I THINK WHAT WE’RE ALSO SEEING IS SOME HOMES TAKING A LITTLE LONGER TO SELL, WHICH MAY BE NORMAL AS THE SUMMER MONTHS END. BUT GENERALLY, APARTMENTS SELL IT JUST A LITTLE PATIENCE MAY BE NECESSARY. YES. SO JUST NOTE HOME MORTGAGE 2000 TO 2200 IS ABOUT THE SAME. LIKE THE PRICE TO RENT A TWO BEDROOM APARTMENT IN FOUR NEW HAMPSHIRE COUNTIES THESE DAYS WHICH IS AMAZING. WHAT NEEDS TO HAPPEN TO CREATE MORE AFFORDABLE HOUSING IN NEW HAMPSHIRE. SO I THINK IT WILL BE A LAYERED APPROACH. SEVERAL DIFFERENT TACTICS WILL BE REQUIRED. WE NEED TO REALLY REVIEW OUR ZONING SO IT CAN BE HELPFUL AND ENCOURAGING BUILDERS TO BUILD. AND I THINK THERE ARE GOING TO BE A LOT OF DIFFERENT FACTORS THAT WE HAVE TO CONSIDER AND BE CREATIVE ABOUT. JOHNNY. SAME QUESTION. I WOULD SAY THE SAME. I THINK WE NEED AN INCREASED INVENTORY. YOU KNOW IF WE HAVE MORE IF WE HAVE MORE SELLERS JUMPING INTO THE MARKET SELLERS ARE USUALLY BUYERS. SO WHAT WE REALLY NEED IS MORE INVENTORY AND LIKE SUSAN SAID, A LAYERED APPROACH. WE MAY BE ABLE TO HAVE DETACHED ADDITIONAL DWELLING UNITS BY LAW. THIS WILL HELP. THERE WILL BE NO SILVER BULLET. ANOTHER THING WE TALKED ABOUT EARLIER WITH THE THREE ACRE ZONING, SAY IF YOU CAN PUT THREE HOUSES ON THOSE THREE ACRES, THAT CAN HELP IMPROVE THE INVENTORY A LOT. NOW YOU ALL LIVE WITH A NEW RULE FROM THE NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS IN NEW HAMPSHIRE REGARDING THE COMMISSION YOU RECEIVE ON THE PRICE OF YOUR HOME. JUST READING HERE. THIS COMES FROM THE SETTLEMENT OF A LAWSUIT BY HOMEOWNERS AGAINST THE NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF NEW HAMPSHIRE REALTORS WHO CLAIM THE COMMISSIONERS ARE DRIVING UP HOME PRICES. WILL YOU BE ABLE TO LIVE WITH THIS NEW COMMISSION RULE OR ARE YOU ALREADY NEGOTIATING? ALWAYS NEGOTIABLE. IT WAS ALWAYS negotiable. SO IN THAT SENSE THERE WILL BE NO CHANGE FOR US. WE WHAT IS DIFFERENT AND WHAT NEEDS TO HAPPEN ACROSS THE COUNTRY. IF YOU ARE AN MLS MEMBER, THE COMMISSIONER CAN NO LONGER BE IDENTIFIED IN THE MLS. IT HAS BEEN REMOVED AND OUR TIME IS UP. OK, I WANT TO THANK SUSAN COLE OF SUSAN COLE REALTY, WHO JUST SPOKE TO JOHNNY AND JOHNNY MAXINTYRE OF CALDWELL REALTY AS WELL. THANK YOU BOTH FOR BEING HERE. THANK YOU FOR JOINING US. AND IF YOU MISSED PART OF THIS NEW HAMPSHIRE HOUSING BRIEFING, YOU C