With historically LOW levels of inventory and extremely HIGH buyer demand, we are in a very unusual Real Estate market. Does it seem like the market is over-inflated and primed for a correction? Maybe. Does it also seem like the likelihood of decreased demand and increased inventory shifting market factors majorly is relatively slim? Yes.
No one can tell you where we’re going – the truth is no one knows – but we can tell you where we’ve been and where we’re at right now. Year to date the number of homes available for sale is down 57% to last year, however, the actual number of homes sold is up 6.8% to last year and average sale prices are up 16.7% to last year. Every single one of our listings by mutual agreement with the sellers, have been intentionally priced on the higher end of its estimated value. Each of those listings has fetched multiple offers and on each one we have gotten well above list price.
SO WHAT DOES THAT MEAN TO YOU?
IF YOU’RE A HOMEBUYER
Come to the table prepared with the knowledge that it is extremely difficult to compete in this market. You will almost definitely be involved in a bidding war if you are looking to buy in the next year or so. You will most likely need to pay quite a bit more than the asking price on a home. If you are using a mortgage to purchase a home, it is likely that you will be asked to pay in cash for any potential difference between the sales price and appraised value of that home. We are working with our buyers to craft creative strategies to find and win out on homes in this fast paced market.
IF YOU’RE A HOMEOWNER
AND intend to stay in your home for the long term, there are several opportunities to capitalize on NOW in order to best position you and your home maximum appreciation. If you haven’t already, now is a fantastic time to refinance your mortgage to leverage rock-bottom interest rates. And if you’re able to, now is also a great time to renovate and invest in upgrades that make your home comfortable for you. As well as making it appealing to eventual buyers – features that focus on working, schooling, dining and exercising from home are very popular as well as smart home and healthy home features.
Most importantly, monitor your home’s value closely and keep informed of market changes in order to keep making the best decisions possible regarding your housing and financial situation.
We provide several tools to help with this:
1. Enroll in HomeBot to monitor your home value and mortgage details and explore how you can best put your equity to good use.
2. If you ever desire a customized, down-to-the-moment home evaluation performed by a professional, contact me any time for a personalized report.
3. Schedule a meeting to review your home(s) and talk about your real estate goals. I’m always available to share with you my professional insight on ways to save money over the life of your loan and leverage the equity you’ve built into your home. It’s one of your largest financial investments that you should be monitoring regularly to maximize it’s full potential.
4. And of course, we send this info via newsletter each month to keep you apprised of the market and help you to stay on top of breaking news and shifts in the market.
IF YOU’RE A HOMEOWNER
AND thinking about selling . . . . strategy is important. If you plan to move out of state, downsize or make a move in the short-to-medium term, now is a great time to get an incredible sales price for your home. However, if you aren’t sure of where to move to and have any concerns on how to sell your home safely in a post-COVID world, you definitely want a plan in place before putting your home on the market. Let’s set up a call to discuss your options and how to best accomplish your goals.
As always, we will be here to continue to provide you with updates about the housing market and answer any and all of your questions. Feel free to reach out to us anytime.
