Why Sellers Should Take Advantage of the Housing Market Now

If you’ve been paying attention to the real estate market recently, you’ll know that the seller’s market, which was strong before the pandemic began, has only increased since the start of COVID-19.

This means home prices are high and buyer competition is fierce. If you’re thinking of selling your home in the near future, you may want to consider putting your home on the market sooner rather than later because, while no one expects these conditions to disappear overnight, the coming months may invite more inventory to the market, as well as lower home prices.

Buyers are still highly incentivized

If you’re a seller, there’s certainly no need to rush. As the economy reopens and strengthens, buyers know the days of low mortgage rates — a factor that drove them to the market in waves — may be ending.

Many buyers are relying on these low mortgage rates to afford a home, despite prices being rather high.

Buyers will be locking in these rates and rushing to the market to take advantage before it’s too late. Sellers, you’ll want to take advantage while buyers are still highly incentivized to enter the market and competition is still high, as it may not last much longer.

Home prices are still high, but bidding wars are on the decline

In HomeLight’s Summer / Fall Report, real estate agents across the country noted that prices are still high, however buyers may be at their breaking point. In fact, realtors across the country have noticed buyers dropping out of deals at the last moment.

Due to the competitive nature of the market, buyers are having to bid over asking price in order to win the home of their dreams. Once they’ve made a deal, they’re left to ponder their decision and rethink whether such a lofty investment is truly worth it.

This often leads to sellers lowering their home price, as now there’s a stigma that something is wrong with the property. Realtors are encouraging their sellers not to get too greedy. If the bid on your home is too astronomical, you may find buyers drop out at the last minute.

Moreover, bidding wars are starting to diminish. While realtors were reporting about 20-plus bids per listing earlier in the year, the average listing now only receives about 5 bids.

While prices are still high compared to normal market conditions, these trends may indicate that buyers may see home prices drop in the coming months.

Inventory may soon return to the market

The main reason for such high home prices? Low inventory. Since most sellers were wary of entering the market during the pandemic, there simply was not enough inventory to match buyer demand. Thus, home prices skyrocketed.

Now that the vaccine is available to all who want it, sellers feel more secure and are beginning to enter back into the market. If you want to sell for the best price, contact your real estate agent in order to take advantage of the favorable market conditions.