The lyrics to the song “Nobody Knows the Trouble I’ve Seen” seem to sum up what could happen in the US housing market over the next 12 months.
Nobody knows the trouble I’ve seen, Nobody knows my sorrow
Sometimes I’m up, Sometimes I’m down, Sometimes I’m almost to the ground
Rampant rises in Australian house prices will grind almost to a halt this year, and an 8% decline is expected in 2023 as a cost-of-living crisis worsens and mortgage rates rise
Prices surged over 20% last year, the biggest annual increase since 1989, making it much harder for first-time buyers to get on the property ladder.
That blistering pace will slow to just 1.0% this year, according to the median forecast in the May 11-25 poll of 11 analysts, down sharply from 6.7% forecast in a February poll.
Prices are forecast to drop 8.0% next year, more than the 5.0% expected in the previous survey.
Two building firms both based in New South Wales have become the latest casualties of Australia’s crumbling construction sector.
Affordable Modular Homes Pty Ltd, a business that specialised in small houses, has shut its doors for good, owing tens of thousands to several creditors including Bunnings Warehouse.
On June 22, the builder placed itself into creditors’ voluntary liquidation after a vote “due to lack of funds” according to the liquidator.
Another NSW builder, Statement Builders Pty Ltd, with a head office in the Sydney CBD, has also folded.
It comes as Australia’s building industry is in crisis, with many companies collapsing so far this year amid rising costs for construction materials and ongoing supply chain issues complicated by locked-in price contracts, putting them out of business.
Housing Market Crash in 2022? Here’s What The Data Shows.
The question that needs to be answered in the US is are we headed to what is happening in Australia or have we learned enough from the 2008 housing crisis to weather the storm?
Related Articles:
If This Isn’t A Housing Bubble, What Do We Call It?
Nobody Can Predict When The Next Housing Bubble Will Happen
Gary Fleisher is the Editor in Chief of Modular Home Source and Offsite Builder. Email at [email protected]
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