Home » Why are Home Prices so High? 2021 Housing Trends & Importance of Home Warranties

Why are Home Prices so High? 2021 Housing Trends & Importance of Home Warranties

Learn about home buying trends and sellers' home warranties.

Homeowners strive for peace of mind and responsible spending. When it comes to buying or selling a home this year, the stakes have never been higher.

Select Home Warranty provides coverage for home systems and appliances, and can play a crucial role when it comes to saving money on the costs to maintain your home. Home warranties can also give sellers a competitive advantage to close the sale of a home.

Do you have questions about home warranty coverage? Call us today: 860-288-4791

2021 Real Estate Trends

The COVID-19 pandemic has significantly impacted real estate trends in 2021.

For the month of May, median listing prices across the country increased by 15.4% from last year, reaching $375,000. Inventory for homes on the market is low and most areas of the United States are in a seller’s market. San Francisco remains the most expensive place to buy a home with the median listing price of $1,300,000, while Indiana is the cheapest with the median home value of $156,000.

The cost to build new homes has also skyrocketed. It’s estimated that the cost of lumber to build a home has risen by $36,000 year over year and the cost of steel has also increased. Steel shortages are in part due to delays in manufacturing through the pandemic while lumber has gradually increased in cost and experienced surges in demand. Both building supplies are also impacted by tariffs starting in 2017 through to today.

Why are home prices so high?

Many sellers who waited to sell their homes in 2020 are met with a surge of buyers desperate to move to suburban areas with yards for their growing families. The millennial generation has also reached their 30s and many are ready to invest their life savings, causing a high-cost scramble while bidding on homes.

Working from home has impacted the way Americans treat work, more often choosing homes that are far from their place of employment and keeping their work from home schedules in place for after the pandemic passes. The liberty to shop for homes outside of cities has allowed many Americans to realize it is time to commit to settling down in the suburbs.

Home Warranties for Sellers

When selling a home, sellers can add additional value by offering an annual home warranty as part of the sale. The cost for Select Home Warranty coverage is between $429.99 and $499.99 per year, depending on the breadth of coverage and time sensitive discount offers, which is a low price when factored into the total cost of a home’s sale.

Learn about seller’s home warranties by calling us today: 860-288-4791

Seller’s home warranties help to completely transfer ownership and responsibility of appliances and systems to the new owner. Home warranty coverage is not dependent on the age of the appliance, either.

Home buyers don’t always have the confidence to trust appliances and systems in their prospective new properties. Home sellers can help speed up the sale of a home by purchasing home warranty coverage so that if anything covered by the terms of the warranty experiences a mechanical breakdown, the new buyer does not have to return to the seller to address post-sale issues.

When selling your home, be sure to give all maintenance records to the new owners. The new owners will need these records of past maintenance in order to prove when there are new issues versus pre-existing issues.

About Select Home Warranty

Since 2012, Select Home Warranty has offered affordable and extensive coverage on home appliances and systems.

Even after the sale of a home, it is not too late for the new buyers to purchase a home warranty. Home warranties provide peace of mind in many frustrating scenarios, such as if the roof leaks, dryer stops spinning, pool pump breaks down, and many more.

Get a free quote today at no charge and compare plans. Select Home Warranty is here to guard your home and your wallet. Give us a call if you have any questions: 860-288-4791