Late October. Spooky season. What’s the new Halloween horror movie playing at the multiplex near you? Sellers’ Market!
Yes. For the first time in a long time, we have shifted from a relatively balanced market to a market that demonstrably favors buyers. Under-contract volume is almost 25% down from a year ago, and inventory is increasing. Price reductions are rampant, sale prices are softening, days on the market are increasing. And buyers are staying home.
It’s been clear that the market was shifting for a while now. It has been feeling weird, and I wrote about it in this space in September. But this time it’s real. The buyers’ market has arrived.
So, what do we do with this?
Buyers, now is the time. You'll have lots to choose from, and eager sellers to work with. Sellers, brace yourselves and consider the following:
Decide if you really want to sell Putting it on the market to see if you get a great price is waste of time and effort. You won’t. Sell it if you need to or want to, but get serious about it. Otherwise sit tight and wait for the pendulum to swing back toward you. It will swing eventually, but there’s no telling when.
Price it right This is the single biggest factor. Over the decades, through all sorts of up and down markets, the general rule is this: the longer a house stays on the market, the less it will bring. And that goes double in a market like this one. Pricing high on the assumption you can always negotiate down, but not up, may work in a sellers’ market, but it won’t work right now. Your house will sit forever, and even if you eventually reduce the price to match what buyers are offering, some buyers may then assume there’s something wrong with the house and won’t even look. Days on the market is your enemy.
Get the house ready to show The idea here is to remove any possible barrier to shoppers seeing themselves living in your house. Clean, open, enough space to move around in, light-filled, easy to show, landscaping under control. Do everything your listing agent tells you to do.
Accept this reality: there is absolutely no guarantee that you will sell your house for more than you paid for it. Despite short-term ups and downs, property values have steadily increased over time, and playing the long game – holding onto a property for decades – usually results in financial gain. However, if you bought within the past 5 years, the current market may deny you a profit.
Tough news, I know. And I hate delivering it. But if you need to sell, rip the band aide off and get it done. Eyes clear, chin up, do the deal, and move on to the next chapter without mourning what might have been.