Preparing for the Next Recession
If a recession comes to the U.S., experts predict it will hit at the end of 2019 or in early 2020, but will not have as great an impact on housing and employment as the Great Recession.
Unemployment may tick up, with fewer jobs coming online, but experts do not anticipate widespread layoffs or foreclosures as was the case in 2008 and 2009. Realtor.com chief economist Danielle Hale says, “We’re at a record-low level of unemployment. The economy can’t stay here." She forecasts a recession beginning within the next two years. "This one will be mild."
"We're just scared because of what happened last time. And that's not what's going to happen [again]," says Lisa Sturtevant, a housing consultant and chief economist at Virginia Realtors, the state's real estate association. If there is another recession, she says, "most people are not going to lose their house. Most people are not going to lose their jobs.” That's a relief to hear—but then again, few experts predicted the last housing bust.