By Steve Levine
Where, oh where, has my inventory gone? I started the spring with plans to put a dozen premier properties on the market, and they are selling faster than I can keep them in stock. I admit, it's a nice problem to have for a change, but now we'se facing an unbelievable shortfall of quality properties.
This spring, the real estate market has sprung back more than anyone would have imagined, at least in some price ranges and communities. Much of this was due to the huge pent up demand as buyers put their plans on hold waiting to see which direction the market was going to move. Now that it's become apparent that we'se hit the bottom and are likely on the way back up, buyers have been flooding into the market afraid that they'se going to miss out on the best buying opportunity in history. When you combine that with interest rates that are at historical lows, it has increased demand to the point where it has outpaced supply in some market segments.
The results have been nothing short of astounding, with almost all of my recent listings seeing multiple offers in the first few days on the market, and sellers finally feeling that for the first time in years they may have a bit more control, and are seeing multiple over full price offers for the first time in over a year. This is allowing the sellers to sit back for a second and evaluate which one to take based on a variety of factors, such as the strength of the pre-approval letter, terms of closing and of course pricing.
Of course getting the point of a multiple offer situation isn's about luck, but about planning and more than a little bit of hard work. In many cases, this is where the “pre-marketing” team I put together comes into place. Over the years, I put together this team of fantastic folks such as my painter, handyman, plumber, electrician and carpet installer who enable me to step into a home that needs a bit of freshening and bring it to like new condition affordably, and in just a few days.
Taking that stress off the homeowners has been a huge help, and delivers a product that truly sparkles on the very first day of the listing period. Just over the last few weeks I'se had the joy of watching several homes undergo this transformation, and as the second dumpster was taken away, along with a Pod full of furniture, you can's imagine how different the home looked. As a result, we have an open house flooded with buyers, and are able to sell for top dollar in just a few days. What could be better than that?
Of course even with all of that excitement, some buyers remain somewhat paralyzed with fear of moving forward. I call this the inventory-fear factor. As we'se put a few homes on the market the past two weeks, the inventory situation has clearly started to improve and there are some lovely homes to pick from. Still, many buyers are afraid to pick any one home – for fear that something even better will come on tomorrow – and that has some of them just frozen. In the end, many of them will wind up losing out on a great opportunity in the hopes of an even greater one, only to find that down the road they wish they had grabbed that great place back in April.
For those buyers who do have the courage and ability to step forward though, we need some great homes to sell. If you'se thinking of a move, now would be the best time to chat that we'se seen in quite a while, so please feel free to reach out anytime at all.
Steve Levine is President of Steve Levine Inc. and an agent at REMAX Prestige, where he has been ranked as the Top Agent in New England in 10 separate years. He can be reached at [email protected] or 508-735-4663.
