For the home-buyers who have been holding-off for prices to come down:
I believe it has been obvious to most of you that we have been in a full-on seller’s market for a while. We know this because sellers could list their homes for high prices and still find buyers. Homes were sometimes selling within a month, and this was all due to the fact that inventory was low, and interest rates also remained low.
Well guess what? The market has been cooling and prices have plateaued. The market could move in one of two directions. If it moves back towards a seller’s market prices will likely follow suit. If we truly are moving into a buyer’s market, watch for a downward pressure on prices.
But let me explain why all signs so far are showing we are headed into a market favoring buyer’s:
The last couple months of data are showing that homes are sitting on the market a little longer than they were in the recent past.
Home prices are generally settling at a plateau.
Inventory has been climbing.
The percentage of homes that have taken a price decrease are now more common than the percentage selling at a price increase.
So what’s the bottom-line? With interest rates just beginning to increase from the low 4% range to now the high 4% (still historically very low), and with the pressure for sellers to take reduced prices, we may be finally shifting into a buyer’s market.
So I say to the buyers of the world who have been holding out, this is the time to start the conversation with a lender and get pre-approved. I would suggest doing this before the next interest rate hike which is scheduled to happen before the end of this year. Most trustworthy realtors will usually have a good lender that they can recommend to you. Now go forth and make offers!
