A Changing Market? Maybe!
We in the real estate business had a rough year – prices dropping, frustrated sellers, buyers with too many choices and very few sales. According to the Pinellas County Realtor Organization, there were 14,655 home and condo sales last year in Pinellas County. The most sold in one month was all the way back in March with a high of 1,647 and the least was in November with a somewhat dismal 849.
We have had to have some hard talks with sellers who are not going to get as high a price as their neighbors did a couple of years ago. We have also had nice talks about buying up in a down market, which allows a seller to take advantage of the reduced prices of homes to move up to a larger house.
The good news is that the absorption rate (the number derived by dividing the total number of units sold by the total number of listings in the MLS) has risen from 5.7% to 6.8%. While that is not great compared with 2005’s 21.7% it is an improvement.
The news from the trenches is also somewhat more hopeful. When realtors congregate now we ask each other “have you seen more activity?” It is said very quietly as not to jinx anything, but overwhelmingly the answer has been yes. Lately, there have been more calls from yard signs, advertisements, and more people at open houses. Is this a sign? Can there be a market upswing? Have we hit bottom and are on the way up?
We are all anxious for the answers to these questions, only time will tell if this is real change or just wishful thinking.
With this in mind, if you are considering selling your house NOW is the time to put your home on the market. There are buyers out there right now looking for houses. They have been waiting for the market’s bottom, but it seems that their patience may have run out. Some are moving in from out of the area, others have had another child and need more room or some just want to negotiate a good deal while the inventory is high. For househunters, THIS is the time to buy when the owners are still willing to negotiate on price and concessions, there are still plenty of homes to choose from.
