With the end of 2017 drawing closer to an end, now is the perfect time to take a look at the real estate market forecast many predicted for this year and determine if it unfolded the way many had expected. At the very least, reflecting on what transpired in the last 12 months will serve as a good exercise moving forward; for it’s not until you know where you have been that you can possibly know where you are going. At the very least, there’s valuable information to be gleaned from breaking down the 2017 real estate market forecast.

It was at this time last year that I decided to loosely try my hand at predicting the 2017 housing market. And for what it’s worth, I was able to with a relatively high degree of success, but I digress. My “predictions” weren’t so much the result of a premonition, as they were more or less the most logical progression for the housing market. In other words, I can’t predict the future — nobody can — but it is possible to make educated guesses based on facts and data. At least, that’s what I did last year. Let’s see how I fared with regard to the following:

THE 2017 REAL ESTATE MARKET FORECAST IN REVIEW

Interest Rates

Almost a year ago, to the day, I sat here and told you “the trend of falling mortgage rates [is] expected to end.” Perhaps even more specifically, however, I suggested that interest rates wouldn’t only stop declining, but rather inch their way back up in 2017 — and inch they did, albeit from incredibly low levels. As we anxiously await to see what next year has in store for the housing market, one thing is certain: we can now officially say that interest rates did rise from historically low levels, and they will probably continue to do so, as long as he economy keeps moving forward.

Over the course of 2016, 30-year fixed-rate mortgages averaged 3.65 percent — the lowest the annual average has been since Freddie Mac started keeping track nearly half a century ago. Now, as the calendar is about to turn to 2018, the average on a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage rested just under four percent (3.99) as recently as November. Due largely, in part, to two Fed interest rate hikes that have already been implemented and a third that should increase the benchmark index before the end of 2017, rates have started a slow climb that is expected to continue into 2018.