We are in a seller's market, and this is what it means for you
Interest rates are low, and cash buyers are ready to go
Depending on which report you read and on which day of the week, you can find conflicting quotes about the real estate market in certain areas.
One thing agreed upon by all is that we are in a seller's market, and it's a good market for both sellers and buyers. Interest rates are low, and cash buyers are ready to go.
On a more specific level, there are segments of the market that are hotter than others. Move-in-ready, entry-level homes are in huge demand, for example.
Over the recent past, fixer-upper homes have been selling with multiple offers for exceptionally high prices. Any home that is not updated or appears tired and dated may be classified as a fixer these days. There has also been a strong resale market for homes that are turnkey ready and totally remodeled, often by professional flippers.
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The biggest part of today's unsold inventory is that segment between. Depending on the exact location and the condition of the property, there may be multiple buyers for a property, or there may not be.
Properties that do not check every box on today's buyer's checklist are more difficult to sell in today's market. Perhaps there is very little backyard and the pool takes up most of it.
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Perhaps there are a lot of steps and many levels, or the house backs up to a poorly maintained alley.
Perhaps the home is dark or the floor plan feels awkward.
Two boxes many homebuyers insist being checked are good public schools and reasonable crime statistics.
Thanks to online searches and easily accessible information, these are typical searches of the buying process. Although schools are not important to every buyer, test scores below 7 can be a turnoff.
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As for crime, few areas are 100% crime-free, but there are different types of crime, and the big concerns are violent crime and home burglaries. Cars being broken into or a bike stolen from a front porch is far less of a concern.
The good news is there is activity in the entire market. Although you may not sell having gotten multiple offers for considerably over the asking price, the worst possible scenario is selling for a price that is still significantly higher than several years ago -- not so bad!
When prices hit their peak in 2006, people were amazed that prices could get so high! Prices then took a plunge and went down to as much as 30% of what they were, and people were discouraged, thinking they would ever return.
Now everyone is selling at prices far above those old prices and thinking there is no end in sight.
If you own a beautiful flat piece of land, a bright home with a great floor plan, a home in mint condition on a great street or a home that would be suitable for every lifestyle, you have got it in the palm of your hand.
Ron Wynn has been among the top 100 agents in America for over 10 years, as noted on REAL Trends/Wall Street Journal. Ron has represented over 2,200 sales totaling over $1.5 billion in sales volume in his 30-plus-year career as a real estate broker in California. He is a noted speaker, trainer, advisor and writer affiliated with Compass, and previously affiliated with Coldwell Banker for 20 years.