I admit ... I was only half-right!

Your perception of the market is spot on. When interest rates went up, I had predicted that buyers and sellers were going to fall out of the market because there was a sting that they felt in what is "The New Normal" with interest rates in the 5%-7% range.  I said it would take about 6 months, but buyers and sellers would eventually become accustomed to the increased rates and return to the housing market.

I was half right!

What I did not expect, now looking back with 20/20 hindsight, was that buyers would come back into the market first before sellers would. Buyers have begun to get past the sting of the increased interest rates. They are used to the new normal and are ready to jump back into the housing market.

Sellers are not quite there yet because they are holding on to lower interest rates that they got in years past. They locked them in and are more reluctant to give those up. That lag time between sellers and buyers getting back into the market is what I underestimated.

So what we have is a market with lots of buyers ready to buy homes and sellers who are not ready yet to give up their low interest rate. And so, buyers are plentiful but just not enough inventory. Low inventory + high demand = increases in prices.  

There are still ways to win though in the resale side of the market. You do not have to go to new construction. You do not have to continue renting. The key is to be hyper aggressive right with the right strategy up front in order to win.

As an example, we had a listing that went under contract today. It had multiple offers over the weekend and was listed for $775,000 and went under contract for $850, 000 with no contingencies in place. There were several offers that came in offering no contingencies. It was not just one. If you do the math, that is almost 10% over list price, going under contract. This is not unique right now, not an outlier. That is sort of the norm. And so again, there are lots of ways to win in the resale market but you have to be aggressive with the right strategy.

Want to put the strategy together to help you win?  Contact us today and we'll customize a plan for your situation!