Judy Chapman, REALTOR® ~ Short Sales / Luxury & Lake Properties

The statistics shown below indicate how fast ... or s-l-o-w ... houses are selling in your area.

If you have to sell your house, you must take into account your community’s Absorption Rate. The concept is easy to understand once you understand the formula.

First, you must know how many homes sold over the last year.

Then you must determine the Absorption Rate, or average number of homes that have sold on a monthly basis.

From the Absorption Rate, you can easily estimate how fast the current inventory of available homes will sell.

The larger the current inventory—or ‘active listings’—the longer it will take any one home to sell.

If there are twice as many active listings available for sale than the current absorption rate, it will take twice the amount of time, or 2 months, to sell out current inventory, provided no new homes enter the market.

If there are three times as many active listings for sale than the current absorption rate, it will take three times the amount of time, or 3 months, to sell out current inventory.

The longer it takes for the current inventory to deplete, the more necessary it becomes for sellers to price their house in a strong competitive position versus all the other houses currently for sale.

It follows that the lower the price, the faster the sale.

If you’re a homeowner looking to sell your house in 2009, remember this:

‘Denial’ isn’t a river in Egypt.

Denial is clinging to the notion that you can sell your house for more money than a buyer in today’s market is willingly to pay.

This is where a knowledgeable real estate agent becomes more important than ever, because the more familiar your agent is with the fluctuations of the current marketplace, the quicker you’re likely to sell your house. And in this unsure market, that means putting more money into your pocket.

The statistics shown below indicate how fast ... or s-l-o-w ... houses are selling in your area.

If you have to sell your house, you must take into account your community’s Absorption Rate. The concept is easy to understand once you understand the formula.

First, you must know how many homes sold over the last year.

Then you must determine the Absorption Rate, or average number of homes that have sold on a monthly basis.

From the Absorption Rate, you can easily estimate how fast the current inventory of available homes will sell.

The larger the current inventory—or ‘active listings’—the longer it will take any one home to sell.

If there are twice as many active listings available for sale than the current absorption rate, it will take twice the amount of time, or 2 months, to sell out current inventory, provided no new homes enter the market.

If there are three times as many active listings for sale than the current absorption rate, it will take three times the amount of time, or 3 months, to sell out current inventory.

The longer it takes for the current inventory to deplete, the more necessary it becomes for sellers to price their house in a strong competitive position versus all the other houses currently for sale.

It follows that the lower the price, the faster the sale.

If you’re a homeowner looking to sell your house in 2009, remember this: ‘Denial’ isn’t a river in Egypt. Denial is clinging to the notion that you can sell your house for more money than a buyer in today’s market is willingly to pay.

This is where a knowledgeable real estate agent becomes more important than ever, because the more familiar your agent is with the fluctuations of the current marketplace, the quicker you’re likely to sell your house. And in this unsure market, that means putting more money into your pocket.

The statistics shown below indicate how fast ... or s-l-o-w ... houses are selling in your area.

If you have to sell your house, you must take into account your community’s Absorption Rate. The concept is easy to understand once you understand the formula.

First, you must know how many homes sold over the last year.

Then you must determine the Absorption Rate, or average number of homes that have sold on a monthly basis.

From the Absorption Rate, you can easily estimate how fast the current inventory of available homes will sell.

The larger the current inventory—or ‘active listings’—the longer it will take any one home to sell.

If there are twice as many active listings available for sale than the current absorption rate, it will take twice the amount of time, or 2 months, to sell out current inventory, provided no new homes enter the market.

If there are three times as many active listings for sale than the current absorption rate, it will take three times the amount of time, or 3 months, to sell out current inventory.

The longer it takes for the current inventory to deplete, the more necessary it becomes for sellers to price their house in a strong competitive position versus all the other houses currently for sale.

It follows that the lower the price, the faster the sale.

If you’re a homeowner looking to sell your house in 2009, remember this: ‘Denial’ isn’t a river in Egypt. Denial is clinging to the notion that you can sell your house for more money than a buyer in today’s market is willingly to pay.

This is where a knowledgeable real estate agent becomes more important than ever, because the more familiar your agent is with the fluctuations of the current marketplace, the quicker you’re likely to sell your house. And in this unsure market, that means putting more money into your pocket.

As you can see by the chart below, Orlando experienced a sharp downturn this year. Considering that over 40% of home sales these days are foreclosure sales, it wouldn’t be surprising to see 2008 end close to the 2004 level. Whether it will continue to go down from there depends on many economic factors, including bank stability, unemployment, and consumer confidence.

Data is drawn from the Mid-Florida Regional Multiple Listing Service as of the date shown.

Judy’s Market Snapshot: Even though the Orlando real estate market continues to be sluggish, there are excellent opportunities for those who act on fundamentals rather than fear.

For sellers who wish to move up, now is as good a time as any. Once you sell, you’ll have your pick of homes and once-in-a-lifetime negotiating strength.

For buyers who have cash available for a down payment and a willingness to jump in, this may be your best opportunity ever. It takes courage to act in uncertain economic times when the overriding fear is, undoubtedly, that house prices will continue to drop. However, if you’re looking for a long-term investment, and better yet a long-term investment you can live in and enjoy, there’s nothing better than real estate.

Data is drawn from the Mid-Florida Regional Multiple Listing Service as of the date shown.