I know I’ve been lax of late. I haven’t updated this blog since St. Patrick’s Day!
Well, it’s Spring and I’m busy! Sorry, but this is the prime selling time and, well, umm, you know, I get a lot of phone calls and a lot of new business at this time of year.
One thing I can say is this: This ain’t no Buyer’s Market. No way, not by a longshot. If you’re out there thinking the market is cooling and Sellers are giving way to aggressive Buyers, disabuse yourself of that notion but quick. I know Buyer’s markets (I bought my first house in a true Buyer’s market) and, believe me, this is NOT such a beast.
Sure, the market has changed slightly. Sure, there are older listings hanging around since last fall. Overall, we see those Sellers sitting tight on their prices. They’re not budging, not giving in to lowball offers. The winter was not so cold this year, but it was definitely chilly in the housing market. Properties didn’t move. So, it would seem many Sellers took the difficult path of sitting still until a Buyer comes along willing to pay the asking price.
And that has begun to happen. In the last two weeks we have seen several houses we were looking at with our Buyer clients go for full price. We’ve had a couple of Buyers go to full price in a “blink,” after offering less than asking.
It’s Spring. If you’re still sitting on the fence about owning your own home, you’d better jump off real soon. Interest rates have gone up, the market is heating again, and you had better get going while the going is still good. That is, don’t let yourself get priced out (either by market prices or interest rates) of a bigger house or a house in a better location.
Get on it, Spring has sprung.