Posted by Kim Adamof on Tue, May 04, 2010 @ 09:32 AM
Spring into Action
There's a lot of money at stake when you are selling your house. Your level of motivation will ultimately determine your success or failure at selling your house this spring. For sellers who just want to sell and want a specific price for their house, then they'll probably sit in inventory longer than a seller who needs to sell. Sellers needing to sell could be to avoid a foreclosure and/or might be in a short sale situation, or have a job transfer. There are many reasons to sell your home.
Raleigh Real Estate Supply vs. Demand
When the inventory of unsold homes increases, buyers can take their pick. This is why pricing a home correctly becomes critical. The inventory of short sales and foreclosures have flooded the market, taking sales away from re-sales.
At the end of March 2010, the new homes inventory has decreased while the resales have increased. Since there are no economic reasons for the increasing amount of resale listings, sellers might be trying to sell to avoid a foreclosure or just testing the market.
Pricing it right
Some sellers undervalue their house to get it to sell fast, while some sellers overprice. Predicting what a house will ultimately sell for down to the penny is like looking into a crystal ball and basically guessing. Unfortunately the real estate market isn't as predictable as the stock market, however, there is enough data of surrounding home sales to determine an acceptable range in home value.
"Burton G. Malkiel, an economist, professor at Princeton University, and the author of A Random Walk Down Wall Street, dispelled the myth that individuals are able to predict the future based on historical trends. Unfortunately, when prices decline, sellers often place too much emphasis on how much their home was worth before the market slowed down. Psychologically, sellers have a tough time coming to the realization that their home is worth less, and they cling to the hope of finding a buyer - even if the home is priced out of the market."
Ultimately, it's the buyer who sets the value, not the real estate agent or the appraiser. Forget about what your home was worth in the past, you need to focus on what the market will pay for the home today.
Downside to selling in the springtime is competition. This is when your neighbors also are putting their house on the market.
Ask yourself these questions:
Are you competing against new construction? If so, is your house up-to-date to compete with these homes?
How many houses are you directly competing against?
How many houses are under contract?
How many have sold in the past 3 months? Of the sold houses, what was their list to sell ratio?
This information will be invaluable when you are selecting your list price.
The biggest tip for correctly pricing your house against the competition is to act like a buyer and go check them out. Have your agent take you inside as if you were a buyer and preview the houses that other buyers are also seeing. Walk through open houses. Take notes and compare the features they offer with your home. With this information, you should be able to determine the fair price for your home.
Pros to Spring Selling
If the market is affected seasonally, then price can be affected. Historical data shows spring is the best time to sell in order to get the best price.
After being stuck inside all winter, people just want to get out and take a look at houses. They've been thinking all winter on moving and now they are ready to see what's on the market.
Your neighborhood looks good with the flowers blooming and green grass. Trees are blooming and everything starts to wake up.
If you have been thinking of selling, let one of our agents explain our current real estate market and work with you to determine a fair selling price. With our experience and local knowledge, we'll take the guesswork out of pricing.
Posted by Kim Adamof on Mon, Mar 01, 2010 @ 11:53 AM
The 20 Healthiest Housing Markets for 2010
Which housing markets are the best bets to recover first? We present our annual list of the 20 healthiest housing markets in the country.
By: Boyce Thompson
Housing economists have long held that the housing rebound, when it comes, will be uneven. The markets that benefit first will be the ones with the strongest core dynamics; places where house prices never got out of hand, cities where a diverse and progressive employment base drives job creation, towns that continue to draw population despite the economic recession.
Now that the housing recovery is nearly upon us--most economists expect a full-fledged recovery to begin this year--it's time to figure out which markets will be the front-runners. Based on last year's performance, especially the level of building permits pulled in the fourth quarter, it's already clear that some markets are poised to grow at a faster pace this year than others in 2010.
Green shoots may be sprouting in markets throughout the country, but which markets will flower first? That's the question we attempt to answer with the Builder Market Health Index, compiled by Hanley Wood Market Intelligence, our market research arm. Market Intelligence (MI) first input 2009 data and 2010 projections for household formations, resale values, and job and income growth. Then, after sprinkling in some secret sauce to weight these drivers, it ranked by health the top 100 housing markets (determined by permits pulled in 2009).
Not surprisingly, many of the markets that topped our 2009 list are on the 2010 leader board, including most of the major markets in Texas, where low development costs kept a lid on house prices during the boom, and strong local economies provided a cushion from the blow of a national recession.
But Lone Star markets were eclipsed this time around by some relatively hot markets in the Carolinas, which accounted for seven of the top 20 spots. Many of the major cities along the Mid-Atlantic seaboard continue to benefit from a strong influx of people drawn by a comfortable way of life, affordable housing, and growing employment prospects.
As with last year, markets that hit the trifecta--having within their borders a state capital and a big university along with a diversified economy--dominate our list of hottest markets. A strong base of government employment, whether it be from the state or the military, has helped stabilize some markets through the housing recession. In many cases, the government is the biggest employer among the 20 markets on our list.
We present this data with one big caveat. These markets may be healthier than others, but they aren't healthy in the way they were during the housing boom, when it was common to find rising population, employment, and income. Virtually every housing market still has at least one blemish. And for that reason only two received a rating of 50 or more, indicating they are truly healthy. That's an improvement, though; only one scored 50 or higher last year.
Hanley Wood Market Intelligence, which took into consideration forecasts from Moody's Economy.com and other sources, is looking for several of these healthiest markets to break out this year. A few of them witnessed dramatic increases in building permits pulled in the fourth quarter of last year, momentum that is expected to carry over into 2010. Several of the markets on this list are poised for double-digit growth.
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