Witheverythinghappeninginthehousingmarketrecently,youmighthave somequestionsaboutsellingyourhouse.Hereareafewthingsyoumightbe wondering,andtheanswerstohelpyoumakeaconfidentdecision.
1.ShouldIWaitToSellMyHouse?
Thesupplyofhomesforsaleisstilllow,sowe’restillinaseller’smarkettoday(see graphbelow).Sellingwhileinventoryisthislowmeansifyoupriceyourhouseright,it’s likelytobeinhighdemand.Thegraphbelowputstoday’sinventoryintoperspective.
2.AreThereStillBuyersLookingforHomes?
Ifyou’rethinkingofsellingyourhousebutareconcernedpeoplearen’tbuyinghomes intoday’smarket,youshouldknowthattherearestillmanyactive,interestedbuyers outthere.AccordingtoMikeSimonsen,PresidentatAltosResearch: “Demandhasexceededtheavailablesupplyofhomes...”
Withmorebuyersthanhomestoday,yourhousemaybejustwhatthey’relookingfor.
3.WillIStillGetaGoodPriceforMyHouse?
Recentdatashowshomepriceshavebottomedoutandarenowontheriseagainin muchofthecountry.Andwhilepricesvarybymarket,expertsprojectthey’llriseand returntomorenormallevelsofappreciation–around4%peryear–after2023.
So,withtheworsthomepricedeclinesbehindusandpricesappreciatingagaintoday, youcanstillsellwithconfidencethisseason
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Ifyou’reconsideringsellingyourhousethisfall,let’stalksoyouhavetheexpertadvice andinsightsyouneedtomakethebestdecision.
Today’sHousingInventory IsaSweetSpotforSellers
Areyouthinkingaboutsellingyourhouse?Ifso,knowtoday’smarketbenefits youbecausethereareveryfewhomesforsale.
Therearen’tenoughhomesforsalecomparedtothenumberofpeoplewho wanttobuythem.
Thegraphbelowuseshistoricaldatatoprovideamoreconcretelookathowmuchthenumbers arestilllaggingbehindthelevelofinventorytypicalofamorenormalmarket:
Source:Realtor.com
It’sworthnotingthat2020-2022arenotincludedinthisgraph.That’sbecausetheywere abnormalyearsforthehousingmarket.Tomakethecomparisonfair,thosehavebeenomittedso theydon’tdistortthedata.Whenyoulookattheorangebarsrepresenting2023andcompare themtotheyearswhenthehousingmarketwasnormal(2017-2019),youcanseethatthe numberofhomesavailableforsaleeachmonthisstillmuchlowerthanusual.
WhatDoesThisMeanforYou?
Ifyou’rethinkingaboutsellingyourhouse,thatlowinventoryiswhythisisagreattimeto doso.Buyershavefewerchoicesnowthantheydidinmorenormalyears,whichmeansyour housewillbeinhighdemand.Ontopofthat,you’llhavelesscompetitionfromothersellers.
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Whenthereareonlyafewhousesforsale,yourswillgetalotofattention.Ifyou'vebeen thinkingaboutselling,nowisthetimetotakeaction.Let’stalktobegintheprocess.
EquityIsaGameChangerfor HomeownersLookingToSell
Areyoutornonwhethertosellyourhouserightnowbecauseyoudon’twantto takeonahighermortgagerateonyournexthome?Ifso,yourequitymaybe exactlywhatyouneedtohelpyoufeelmorecomfortablemakingyourmove.
Whenyousellyourhouse,youcanuseyourequitytowardpurchasingyournexthome.Butfirst, it'simportanttoknowwhatequityisandhowitgrows.
WhatEquityIsandHowItWorks
Equityisthecurrentvalueofyourhomeminuswhatyouoweontheloan.Andrecently,that equityhasbeengrowingfarfasterthanyoumayexpect.
Overthelastfewyears,homepricesrosedramatically,andthatgaveyourequityabigboost veryquickly.Whilethemarkethasstartedtonormalize,there’sstillanimbalancebetweenthe numberofhomesavailableforsaleandthenumberofbuyerslookingtomakeapurchase.And it’sbecausehomesareinsuchhighdemandthatpricesarebackontherisetoday.RobBarber, CEOofATTOM,apropertydataprovider,explains:
“Equitylevelswerehighevenduringtherecentdownturn,andnowtheyaregoingbackup andbetterthanever.”
HowEquityBenefitsYou
Withtoday’saffordabilitychallenges,thatequitycanbeagamechangerwhenyoumove.Here’s why:basedondatafromATTOMandtheCensus,nearlytwo-thirds(68.7%)ofhomeowners haveeitherpaidofftheirmortgagesorhaveatleast50%equity(seechartbelow): AmericansSittingonTremendousEquity
68.7%HavePaidOffTheirMortgageorHaveatLeast50%Equity
MortgagedHomeswith MoreThan50%Equity MortgagedHomeswith LessThan50%Equity OwnstheHomeFree andClear
Sources:Census,ATTOM
Thatmeansroughly70%haveatremendousamountofequityrightnow.
Onceyousellyourhouse,youcanuseyourequitytohelpyouwithyournextpurchase.Itcould besome(ifnotall)ofwhatyou’llneedforyournextdownpayment.Itmayevenbeenoughto allowyoutoputaconsiderablylargerdownpaymentonyournexthome,soyoudon’thaveto financequiteasmuch.And,ifyou’vebeeninyourcurrenthouseforyears,youmayhaveeven builtupenoughequitytopayallcash.Ifthat’strueforyou,you’dbeabletoavoidborrowing altogether,soyouwouldn’thavetoworryabouttoday’smortgagerates.
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Ifyou’replanningtomakeamove,theequityyou’vegainedcanmakeabigimpact.To findoutjusthowmuchequityyouhaveinyourcurrenthomeandhowyoucanuseit tofuelyournextpurchase,let’sconnect.
TheaverageU.S.homeownernowhasmorethan $274,000inequity–upsignificantlyfrom $182,000beforethepandemic.
-SelmaHepp,ChiefEconomist,CoreLogic
HomePrices AreRebounding
Ifyou’refollowingthenewstoday,youmayfeelabitunsureaboutwhat’s happeningwithhomepricesandfeartheworstisyettocome.Localhomeprice trendsstillvarybymarket,buthere’swhatthenationaldatatellsus.
Today’sheadlinesaremakingthingslookworsethantheyare.Ifwetakeayear-over-yearview, homepricesdiddropsome,butthat’sbecausewe’recomparingtoaveryunusualyearinthe housingmarket.Toavoidanunfaircomparisontothatpreviouspeak,weneedtolookatmonthly data.Andthattellsaverydifferentandmuchmorepositivestory.
Thegraphsbelowuserecentmonthlyreportsfromthreesourcestoshowtheworsthome pricedeclinesarealreadybehindus,andpricesareappreciatingnationally.
PercentChangeinHomeValues
Lookingatthismonthlyview,wecanseethepastyearinthehousingmarketcanbedividedinto twoparts.Inthefirsthalfof2022,homepricesweregoingup,andfast.However,startinginJuly, pricesbegantogodown(showninredinthegraphsonthepreviouspage).ByaroundAugustor September,thetrendstartedtostabilize.But,lookingatthemostrecentdataforearly2023, thesegraphsalsoshowthatpricesaregoingupagain.
Thefactthatallthreereportsshowpriceshavebeengoingupforfiveormorestraightmonthsis anencouragingsignforthehousingmarket.Themonth-over-monthdataindicatesanational shiftishappening–homepricesarerisingagain
Expertsbelieveoneofthereasonspricesdidn’tcrashlikesomeexpectedisbecausetherearen’t enoughavailablehomesforthenumberofpeoplewhowanttobuythem.Evenwithtoday’s mortgagerates,therearemorepeoplelookingtobuythantherearehomesavailableforsale.
MarkFleming,ChiefEconomistatFirstAmerican, explainshowmoredemandthansupplykeeps upwardpressureonprices:
“Historyhasshownthathigherratesmay takethesteamoutofrisingprices,butit doesn’tcausethemtocollapseentirely.This isespeciallytrueintoday’shousingmarket, wherethedemandforhomescontinues tooutpacesupply,keepingthepressure onhouseprices.”
DougDuncan,SeniorVPandChiefEconomist atFannieMae,stateshomepricegrowth isexceedingexpectationsthankstothat highdemand:
“...housingpricescontinuetoshow strongergrowththanwhatwas previouslyexpected...Housing’s performanceisatestimonytothestrength ofdemographic-relateddemand...”
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Here’sHow ThisAffectsYou
Ifyou’vebeenwaitingtosellyour housebecauseyouwere concernedabouthowchanging homepriceswouldaffectits value,itmightbeagoodideato teamupwitharealestateagent tolistyourhouse.Youdon’thave towaitanylongerbecausethe latestdatasuggeststhingsare turninginyourfavor.
Ifyoudelayedyourmovingplansbecauseyouwereconcernedabouthomeprices dropping,thelatestdatarevealstheworstisalreadyover,andpricesare appreciatingnationally.Let’sconnectsoyouknowwhat'shappeningwithhome pricesinourarea.
PricingYourHouse RightStillMattersToday
Makingsureyousettherightpriceforyourhouseiscrucialrightnow.Ifyou're planningtosellyourhousethisfall,it'sessentialtopriceitappropriatelyfor today’smarket.
Whilethisisn’tthefrenziedmarketwesawoverthepastfewyears,homesthatare pricedrightarestillsellingquicklyandseeingmultipleoffersrightnow.Datafromthe NationalAssociationofRealtors(NAR)shows74%ofhomessoldwithinamonthand theaveragesaw3.0offersinJuly.
Tosetyourselfuptoseeadvantageslikethese,youneedtorelyonanagent.Onlyan agenthastheexpertiseneededtofindtherightaskingpriceforyourhouse.Here’s what’satstakeifthatpriceisn’taccuratefortoday’smarketvalue.
Thepriceyousetforyourhousesendsamessagetopotentialbuyers.
Priceittoolowandyoumightraisequestionsaboutyourhome’sconditionorlead buyerstoassumesomethingiswrongwithit.Nottomention,ifyouundervalueyour house,youcouldleavemoneyonthetable,whichdecreasesyourfuturebuyingpower.
Ontheotherhand,priceittoohighandyouruntheriskofdeterringbuyersfromever touringitinthefirstplace.Whenthathappens,youmayhavetodoapricedroptotry tore-igniteinterestinyourhousewhenitsitsonthemarketforawhile.Justbeaware thatapricedropcanbeseenasaredflagforsomebuyerswhowillwonderwhythe pricewasreducedandwhatthatmeansaboutthehome.
ArecentarticlefromNerdWalletsumsituplikethis:
“Yourhouse’smarketdebutisyourfirstchancetoattractabuyerandit’s importanttogetthepricingright.Ifyourhomeisoverpriced,youruntherisk ofbuyersnotseeingthelisting....Butpriceyourhousetoolowandyoucould endupleavingsomeseriousmoneyonthetable.Abargain-basementprice couldalsoturnsomebuyersaway,astheymaywonderifthereareany underlyingproblemswiththehouse.”
Thinkofpricingyourhomeasatarget.Yourgoalistoaimdirectlyforthecenter –nottoohigh,nottoolow,butrightatmarketvalue.
Pricingyourhousefairlybasedonmarketconditionsincreasesthechanceyou’llhave morebuyerswhoareinterestedinpurchasingit.Thatmakesitmorelikelyyou’llsee multipleofferstoo.Plus,whenhomesarepricedright,theystilltendtosellquickly.
Togetahigh-levellookintothepotentialdownsidesofoverorunderpricingyourhouse andtheperksthatcomewithpricingitatmarketvalue,seethechartbelow:
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Pricingyourhouseatmarketvalueiscritical,sodon’trelyonguesswork.Let’sconnect tomakesureyourhouseispricedrightfortoday’smarket.
Decidingwhetherit’stherighttime tosellyourhomeisaverypersonal decision.Therearenumerousimportant questionstoconsider,bothfinancialand lifestyle-based,beforeputtingyourhome onthemarket....Yourfutureplans andgoalsshouldbeasignificantpartof theequation...
-Bankrate
YourNeedsMatterMoreThan
Today’sMortgageRates
Ifyou’rethinkingaboutsellingyourhouserightnow,chancesareit’sbecause somethinginyourlifehaschanged.
Whilethingslikemortgageratesareakeypartofyourdecisiononwhatyou’llbuynext,it’s importanttonotlosesightofthereasonyouwanttomakeachangeinthefirstplace.
It’struemortgagerateshaveclimbedfromtherecordlowswesawinrecentyears,andthathas animpactonaffordability.Withrateswheretheyarerightnow,somehomeownersaredeciding they’llwaittosellbecausetheydon’twanttomoveandhaveahighermortgagerateontheirnext home.AsDanielleHale,ChiefEconomistatRealtor.com,explains:
“...homeownerswholockedina30-yearfixedrateinthe2-3%rangedon’tnecessarily wanttogivethatupinexchangeforarateinthe6-7%range.”
Butyourlifestyleandyourchangingneedsshouldmattermore.Hereareafewofthemost commonreasonspeoplechoosetoselltoday.Anyoneofthesemaybemoreimportantthan keepingyourcurrentmortgagerate.
AsAliWolf,ChiefEconomistatZonda,says:
“First-timeandmove-upbuyersarebothactive...thelatterdrivenbylife changes.Divorce,marriage,newhigherpaidjob,andexistinghomeunsuitable allreferenced.”
1.Relocation
Thingsthatmightmotivateamoveinclude changingjobs,adesiretobeclosertoloved ones,wantingtoliveinadreamlocation,or justlookingforachangeinscenery.
Forexample,ifyouliveinsuburbiaandjust landedyourdreamjobinNYC,youmaybe thinkingaboutsellingyourcurrenthomeand movingtothecityforwork.
2.Upgrading
Manyhomeownersselltomoveuptoalarger home.Thisiscommonwhenthere’saneedfor moreroomtoentertain,ahomeofficeorgym, oradditionalbedroomstoaccommodatea growingnumberoflovedones.
3.Downsizing
Homeownersmayalsoselltoreduce maintenanceandcosts.Or,theymaysell becausesomeone’smovedoutofthehome recentlyandthere’smorespacethanneeded. Itcouldalsobethatthey’verecentlyretiredor arereadyforachange.
4.ChangeinRelationshipStatus
Divorce,separation,ormarriageareother commonreasonsindividualsselltobuy differenthomes.
5.HealthConcerns
Ifahomeownerfacesmobilitychallengesor healthissuesthatrequirespecificliving arrangementsormodifications,theymightsell tofindahomethatworksbetterforthem.
Forexample,ifyou’relivinginacondoand decideit’stimetoseekoutahomewithmore space,orifyourhouseholdisgrowing,it maybetimetofindahomethatbetterfits thoseneeds.
Forexample,you’vejustkickedoffyour retirementandyouwanttomoveto somewhereyoucanenjoythewarm weatherandhavelesshousetomaintain.Your newlifestylemaybebettersuitedfor adifferenthome.
Forexample,ifyou’verecentlyseparated,it maybedifficulttostillliveunderoneroof. Sellinganddownsizingmaybebetteroptions.
Forexample,youmaybelookingtosellyour homeandusetheproceedstohelppayfora unitinanassisted-livingfacility.
Withhighermortgagerates,therearesomeaffordabilitychallengesrightnow–butyour needsandyourlifestylemattertoo.
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Ifyou’rereadytosellyourhousesoyoucanmakeamove,let’sconnect.Thatwayyou haveanexpertonyoursidetohelpyounavigatetheprocessandfindahomethatcan deliveronwhatyou’relookingfor.
HowanExpertCanChange EverythingWhenYouSell
Sellingyourhousewithoutarealestateagentcanbetough,asitinvolves challengeslikepreparingthehome,settingtherightprice,andmanaging paperwork.Arealestateagent'ssupportcanbeinvaluable,makingtheprocess smootherforyou.
1.MarketingandExposure
Effectivemarketingisakeypieceofattractingqualifiedbuyerstoyourproperty.Realestate agentshaveaccesstovariousmarketingtoolsandplatforms,includingMLSlistings,professional photography,virtualtours,andextensiveprofessionalnetworks.Theycancreateacompelling listingthathighlightsyourhome’sbestfeaturesandreachesawideraudience.
Ifyousellonyourown,youmaystruggletomatchthereachofagents,resultinginlimited exposureand,ultimately,fewerpotentialbuyers.
2.ManagingLiabilityandLegalConsiderations
Today,moredisclosuresandregulationsaremandatorywhensellingahouse.Andallthe paperworkandlegalaspectsofsellingahomecanbealottomanage.Sellingahousewithout professionalguidanceexposeshomeownerstopotentialliabilityrisksandlegalcomplications.
Realestateagentsarewell-versedinthecontracts,disclosures,andregulationsnecessary duringasale.Theirexpertisehelpsminimizetheriskoferrorsoromissionsthatcouldleadto legaldisputesordelays.
3.NegotiationsandContracts
Negotiatingthetermsofahomesalecanbechallenging,especiallywhenemotionsareinvolved. Youmayfinditoverwhelmingtonavigatethesenegotiationsalone.Withoutanagent,you assumethisresponsibilityonyourown.Thismeansyou’llhavefullaccountabilityforworkingand negotiatingwith:
Thebuyer,whowantsthebestdealpossible.
Thebuyer’sagent,whowillusetheirexpertisetoadvocatefor thebuyer.
Thehomeinspectioncompany,whoworksforthebuyer.
Thehomeappraiser,whoassessestheproperty’svalueto protectthelender.
Ratherthangoingtoe-to-toewithallthesepartiesalone,leanonanexpert.Realestateagents skillfullynegotiateonyourbehalfandensurethatyourbestinterestsareprotected.Theyhave experienceinhandlingtoughnegotiations,counteroffers,andcontingencies.Whenyousellyour houseyourself,you’llneedtobepreparedtomanagethesevendorsonyourown.
4.PricingandHousingMarketKnowledge
Intoday’schanginghousingmarket,havingareliable,localrealestateagentbyyoursideis importanttoavoidmistakesduringthesellingprocess.AstheNationalAssociationofRealtors (NAR),explains:
“Aknowledgeablerealestateagentwillknowwhat'srequiredinyourmarket, helpingyouavoiddelaysandcostlymistakes.Also,there’salotofjargoninvolvedina realestatetransaction;youwanttoworkwithaprofessionalwhocanspeakthelanguage.”
Anexpertrealestateadvisorknowsaboutnationalandlocaltrends.Theycanexplainhowthese trendsaffectyouandhelpyoumakeadecisionbasedontrustworthyinformation.
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Whilesellingahomeonyourownmightseemappealingatfirst,thechallengesthat comewithitcanquicklybecomeoverwhelming.Theexpertisethatarealestateagent bringstothetableisvitalforasuccessfulsale.Insteadoftacklingitalone,makesure youhaveanexpertonyourside.
“Aknowledgeablerealestateagentwillknow what'srequiredinyourmarket,helpingyou avoiddelaysandcostlymistakes.Also,there’s alotofjargoninvolvedinarealestate transaction;youwanttoworkwitha professionalwhocanspeakthelanguage.”
-NationalAssociationofRealtors
I’msureyouhavequestionsandthoughtsaboutthe realestateprocess.
I’dlovetotalkwithyouaboutwhatyou’vereadhereandhelpyou onthepathtosellingyourhome/property.Mycontactinformationis below,andIlookforwardtoworkingwithyou. Experiencecounts,whenresultsmatter!
