Entire industries are being forced to reconsider their business models in the COVID-19 world. Unemployment has skyrocketed during the pandemic, but some industries are more likely than others to weather the storm and even grow after the pandemic eases.
Keeping a pulse on employment is key in real estate, as new job centers can spawn new demand for housing in an area. But real estate itself is among the top five industries cited by MarketWatch as most likely to rebound.
Record low interest rates are enticing to home buyers and existing homeowners in refinancing to lower payments. The National Association of REALTORS® is expecting a strong turnaround in home sales in its upcoming reports.
“Sales completed in May reflect contract signings in March and April—during the strictest times of the pandemic lockdown and hence the cyclical low point,” says Lawrence Yun, NAR’s chief economist. “Home sales will surely rise in the upcoming months with the economy reopening, and could even surpass one-year-ago figures in the second half of the year.”
As more people spend a greater amount of time at home, they may become more aware of shortcomings in their space and be motivated to move for amenities like a home office or a bigger backyard. “It’s likely that real estate markets will be especially hot in places that can offer homeowners more space at relatively low prices compared with big cities,” MarketWatch notes.
Other industries cited by MarketWatch expected to grow following the pandemic are those in education and technology, manufacturing, telehealth, and robotics. “With things changing so quickly, job posting data gives us the most up-to-date look at what’s going in our economy,” Meredith Metzker, a content marketing specialist with Emsi, a labor analytics firm, told MarketWatch. “It helps us get a feel for which companies and industries are hiring right now.”
Source: “Five Growing Post-COVID Industries and Where Their Jobs Are,” MarketWatch (July 13, 2020)
