How Home Prices are Rising this Spring
As spring comes into bloom, I can feel the excitement building up for our Spring selling season. Yet, if you wait, you could miss it! and here’s why…We’re seeing the market normalize after an incredible expansion period and an upswing through the post-pandemic Seller’s market fueled by low interest rates. That led to prices softening quicker than expected by a round of combo punches thrown by the Fed hiking interest rates to stop inflation.
You may be curious about my opinion on the local real estate market, so I've selected a few insights I've shared this quarter:
National Housing market predictions are cool, but they don't mean anything about our local market
All the national news headlines need to be drilled into and examined at a local level with local facts. The headlines on their own are just noise.
The typical home value in April climbed 1.5% in San Jose, 1.3% in San Francisco and 1.2% in Seattle from the prior month, according to non-seasonally adjusted data from Zillow, surpassing the 1% increase for the US. Read more in the Bloomberg News Real Estate section where I was quoted about our local market.
We're seeing continued appreciation and active trading on all sides, albeit slower than we've gotten used to these last 7-years, with scarce inventory propping up home values
It's one of the most interesting markets I've seen for several particular reasons:
As inflation may be hitting it's peak, we should expect to see interest rates improve by the end of Summer
Buyers still have more room to negotiate, rate buy-downs, terms and conditions are commonly accepted
Pricing strategies have evolved/ are stratified by price point
Creative financing is making a come back
Investing in real estate is a hedge against inflation and bank collapse amid rising interest rates
EXPANDING TO MEET THE NEEDS OF A MOBILE LIFESTYLE
I'm consistently connecting with agents/ brokers all over the country, from Bend, OR to Atlanta, GA, Mallorca, Esp. to Venice, It. Have a question about the market in Costa Rica? Please reach out to me. I'd love to introduce you to a trusted advisor that I know in that area!
PREPARING YOUR HOME
Given our distinct seasonality, the rapid changes we’ve seen in the banking industry, now is the time which preparing a home for the market is more important than ever. Buyers want to see ‘show ready’ homes and typically avoid buying anything that entails a “project” My team and I discuss this with acute attention to detail in my latest video: Preparing a Home for Sale: Before and After
If you have any questions about the dynamics of our local markets, or wish to discuss "what-if" scenarios, reach out to me today!
Bloomberg News article quoting Chris Jurach, Top Producing listing agent at Engel & Völkers San Francisco