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First Love, Second Wife or Third REALTOR
There is a story of a real estate agent’s prayer: “Dear Lord, if I can’t be someone’s first love, or second wife, at least, please let me be their third REALTOR®.” In a normal market with a balanced supply of sellers and buyers, this describes the preference that it might be better to be the […]
First Love, Second Wife or Third REALTOR
There is a story of a real estate agent’s prayer: “Dear Lord, if I can’t be someone’s first love, or second wife, at least, please let me be their third REALTOR®.” In a normal market with a balanced supply of sellers and buyers, this describes the preference that it might be better to be the […]

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There is a story of a real estate agent’s prayer: “Dear Lord, if I can’t be someone’s first love, or second wife, at least, please let me be their third REALTOR®.” In a normal market with a balanced supply of sellers and buyers, this describes the preference that it might be better to be the third listing agent to help the seller after they became more realistic about their list price.

In today’s market, it might have more to do with buyers because of the increased competition, their chance of having an accepted offer is greatly reduced and it is only after they have lost several that they become more aggressive in the negotiations.

Competition for homes being sold has greatly increased over the previous two years, according to a recent REALTORS® Confidence Index Survey from NAR. In April of 2021, there were nearly five offers for every home sold which increased from two offers in 2019 and 2020.

Utah reported the highest number of offers per home sold with seven while Arizona, Georgia, New Hampshire, and Washington had six. California, Colorado, Tennessee, and Texas each had five offers per home sold.

To make their offers appear more attractive, more buyers are making cash offers to eliminate financing contingencies and reduce the chance of rejection. Cash offers represented 25% of offers in April and 21% in the first quarter of 2021 compared to 18% in 2020.

Buyers who are not able to make cash offers are increasing their down payment. Nearly half of homebuyers are putting 20% or more down during the first quarter of 2021. Even first-time buyers are using an 80% mortgage to make their offers more attractive to sellers.

The median days on the market for listings was 17, down from 21 days a year ago. 31% of residential sales were made to first-time homebuyers which is down from 32% in March 2021 and down from 36% one year ago.

While nearly ¾ of homes closed on time, 5% were terminated and 22% were delayed but eventually went into settlement. Appraisal and financing issues were the major contributors to the delayed transactions. The two major factors for the terminated transactions were also appraisals and inspections issues.

Today’s environment requires a strong, sensitive agent who understands your goals as well as the intricacies of the market to be able to devise a plan to make it happen. Your agent and their recommendations for the other professionals involved are the boots on the ground necessary whether you are a buyer or a seller.

LIST OF BLOGS

Avoid Taxes by Keeping Track of Improvements

Keeping track of capital improvements to your home can help you avoid taxes later down the road when you sell it. Some homeowners don't even consider such a thing because they are aware of the capital gain exclusion of up to $500,000 for married homeowners and...

Laying the groundwork for the best mortgage

With mortgage rates having doubled what they were in early 2022, getting the lowest rate possible could mean the difference in being able to buy a home or at the very least, makes it much more affordable. Some people are waiting for rates to come down and while they...

Handling an Appraisal Gap

An appraisal gap describes the difference between the sales price and the lower amount of the appraisal required by the mortgage being obtained by the buyer. It becomes an issue if the seller is not willing to lower the price or the buyer is not willing to pay the...

Make your home offer the most appealing

Sales in March 2023 were down 2.4% month over month and still down 22.0% year over year according to the NAR Housing Snapshot. The median sales price dipped 0.9% to $375,700 and there are 2.6 months supply of homes on the market compared to 2 months a year ago....

Protect yourself with a new construction inspection

Builders of new homes offer or are required to warrant their work for a specified period. Municipal inspections are generally required during different stages to "ensure the life, health, safety, and welfare of the public" but even if something is missed,...

Higher Interest Rates May be the Help You Need

Like opening and closing a faucet increases and decreases the water flow, lowering interest rates increases home sales and raising interest rates decreases home sales. When home sales increase during periods of limited inventory, demand increases and prices go up....

Shopping Mortgage Rates

Nobel Prize recipient, Richard Thaler, in his research into seemingly irrational economic behaviors, "found that consumers generally search too little, get confused while evaluating complex alternatives, and are slow to switch from past choices, even if it costs...

Selling a Luxury Home: 10 critically important tips

Selling a Luxury Home: 10 critically important tips. The affluent who own luxury properties often value their privacy and require discreet handling of their real estate transactions. Therefore, it is crucial for them to seek the services of experienced professional...

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Shopping Mortgage Rates

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