For those of you who watch the housing market statistics for Thurston County, you may have noticed that we have a very unique situation forming in our market. Housing prices (for homes sold) have been going up since January, while total numbers sold have been declining. This represents a clear sign that a correction of some sort is immenent or underway. If sales volume goes down, prices should go down as sellers try to entice buyers. Conversely, an increase in sales volume should dictate an increase in prices.....simple supply and demand.
Chicken Little: I am not suggesting that the market is about to tank, I am stating the obvious; some of us have gotten a little bit "irrationally exuberant", and need tone down our expectations.
What does this mean for home sellers and buyers in Thurston County? While I certainly can't predict the future; if I were an economist, I would guess that the sector of our market that consists of the "more desirable homes" will continue to do well, and those that don't fit the mold will sit on the market until sellers reduce prices to a point that buyers will accept.
If you are a seller and want to get your home off the books, I recommend that you set your price in accordance with what the current market will support. Sales prices based on what the neighbors sold for last year don't count, what counts is that there is more competition for buyers than there has been in a long time, and many more homes on the market. If you, the seller, look at this from a supply/demand perspective, and price accordingly, you will do fine; the aggressive seller will get the sale.
If you are buying, all of this is great news. The upside of our market will almost certainly pay off in the long run, but the days of 25% annual appreciation are over for the near term. We are seeing some really great deals in our market, and buyers have a large inventory to choose from coupled with lots of motivated sellers....So if you are buying, its official in my book, this is a buyers market.
Please visit the Thurston County Post to view this article, and other articles relevant to the state of real estate in our community.
Whether you are buying or selling a home, the name of the game is exposure. Marketing is what I do, on this site and numerous others; Ask me, I can prove it! And Get to Know Your Realtor©
ActiveRain Corp. is not responsible for the accuracy of the site's content (which is written by members of the ActiveRain Real Estate Network) and does not endorse the views of the real estate agents, mortgage brokers, and others listed here.
Powered by the ActiveRain Real Estate Network
© 2008 ActiveRain Corp. All Rights Reserved
Your market sounds very much like ours and we are on the opposite coast. My blog entry today touched on the same thoughts. Good post!
I agree Phil.
Sellers who will do the work necessary to really appeal to a buyer and price appropriately to compete against the available inventory will do just fine.
Case in point, my new listing at 1101 Jackson Ave NW- they got 2 offers in less than 24 hours. I will accept some of the credit in my marketing and help for the sellers, and give credit to sellers who were actively involved in the process and wanted to make their home the best and even went with me to look at the competition before deciding on price.
Agreed. Good post.
Thanks for your comments; in some ways the market is fickle right now....but as Sarah pointed out, the buyers are out there, you just have to beat the competition.