We begin the 2021 real estate market where we left off last year with an under supply of listings and an over supply of buyers, creating an unbalanced market. This market has created lots of stress for buyers who are making numerous offers before finally getting an offer accepted and the multiple offers are pushing prices higher. Last week, the National Association of Realtors (NAR) released their Existing Home Sales Report, which shows that the inventory of homes for sale is currently at an all-time low. “Total housing inventory at the end of December totaled 1.07 million units, down 16.4% from November and down 23% from one year ago (1.39 million). Unsold inventory sits at an all-time low 1.9-month supply at the current sales pace, down from 2.3 months in November and down from the 3.0-month figure recorded in December 2019. NAR first began tracking the single-family home supply in 1982.”
If You’re a Buyer:
Be patient
Be ready to move forward quickly
Get pre-approved for a mortgage
Be prepared to make a competitive offer
Be creative with your offer to appeal to seller needs
Utilize an experienced agent to help you through the process.
If You’re a Seller:
Think about what you want in an offer. You should be able to negotiate the best possible terms for your particular situation. Remember that you will still need to deal with appraisal issues, so even if you receive a high offer, the buyer could try to negotiate a price reduction if the appraisal is low. Do you need time before you will be ready to close or do you want to close quickly? Do you want to avoid making any repairs? You really have the upper hand to decide.