Where Is Our Crazy Market Headed?

Our market is favoring sellers, but buyers should be careful to avoid overzealous buying.

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Is this a crazy time in the Lane County real estate world or what?

As you probably know, back in February we only had 1.9 months of inventory, which means at that rate of consumption, we’d be out of properties in 1.9 months. To give you some perspective, six months is considered a balanced level of inventory between buyers and sellers. 1.9 months was not a good number, but I got encouraged when it shot up to 2.2 months in March. This means we’re getting more listings, which will help the market. 

There is a huge demand from buyers right now, and the market needs more inventory. Otherwise, prices will continue to skyrocket for the lower-end properties. I’ve gotten calls from several sellers lately asking me if I could sell their house at a great price. My response to them was that I could, but only if they priced it right first. If you price a property correctly, it should sell easily and quite possibly generate multiple offers in doing so. If you price it above its value because you think the market will support it, it won’t.

There is a huge demand for buyers right now, and our market needs more inventory.

How do you price your home correctly? 

You need to confer with your Realtor and have them do a comparative market analysis of homes that have sold recently that are similar to yours to give you a legitimate price point basis. If you price your home high and it doesn’t sell right away, you’ll have to lower the price. After that, your home will become a stale listing in this market. For example, if you price your home at $275,000 or lower, there will be high demand for it. If you price it higher than that, your pool of potential buyers will be much smaller. 

On the buyer’s side, I want to warn you about overzealous buying. Right now, many homes listed in the $225,000 to $250,000 price range are receiving multiple offers. The problem with this is each buyer is trying to position themselves higher than the other by putting in escalation clauses in their offers, which means they’ll pay more than the highest competing offer up to a certain price. The danger here is that this drives prices up and may cause you to overpay for a home.

If you’re a buyer of an entry-level home, be patient for the next couple of months because the recent surge in demand should cease. Don’t wait too long though, because interest rates may go up. If you’re a seller, don’t get greedy. 

If you have any questions about our market or are looking to buy or sell a home, don’t hesitate to give me a call. I’d be glad to help. 

We Can Refer You to Reputable Home Care Professionals

Buying and selling real estate aren’t the only things we know about. We’ve worked with the best local service providers in the area and would love to share our list with you.

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Want to buy a home? Search all homes for sale.

There are a lot of needs that come up in and around your house that don’t involve buying and selling. Maybe you need your carpets cleaned or windows washed. The best way to avoid bad experiences when hiring someone is to get a referral from someone you trust, like me.

We’ve seen just about everything when it comes to home maintenance and repairs, so we know who in the area does the best job. We are happy to refer you to those people for any job in and around your home. You want to hire people who have experience and good references.

Whatever your needs are, we can refer you to someone who can help.

Whether you’re getting your carpets cleaned, bathroom remodeled, or a simple electrical job done, nothing gives you more peace of mind as a homeowner than knowing the person you hired to take care of the job is a trusted and reputable professional. We’ve got a list of great preferred service providers for all your household needs.

Don’t try to do things like electrical work on your own. You will end up being liable in the end because you are the one doing the work. Hire a licensed, bonded contractor who can protect you.

If you have any questions for me or need any recommendations, don’t hesitate to reach out. I would love to hear from you.

Should You Buy a Home Now?

Home prices are incredibly high right now, so why is it a good time to buy a home? I’ll explain today.

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Want to buy a home? Search all homes for sale.

Since home prices are so high, is now really a good time to buy a home?

While price is certainly an important factor to consider, you should also pay attention to the long-term cost of your home’s mortgage.

Right now, it’s especially important to consider how much the home will appreciate in the next several years and how much it will cost to borrow the funds to purchase the home. In other words, you need to pay attention to interest rates. 

Pay attention to interest rates and appreciation.

The Fed has signaled a faster pace for raising interest rates in 2017. By the end of the year, rates could go up as much as 0.75%. We also don’t expect home prices to go down anytime soon. As a buyer, the longer you wait, the higher the price of that home will be. Rising interest rates can also have a huge impact on the cost of the home.

In order to make up for a 1% increase in rates, the cost of the home would have to go down by 10% if you want to keep mortgage payments the same. As you can see, interest rates have a huge effect on home purchasing power.

Such a sharp decrease in home prices does not seem likely given the current demand in Lane County. Our market is No. 1 or 2 in the nation in terms of appreciation.

Ultimately, if you plan on buying a house in 2017, I encourage you to do so sooner rather than later. If you have any questions about buying in our current market, give me a call or send me an email. I would be happy to help you!