Spring - Prime Time For Home Sales

Spring – The Best Time to Sell Your Home!

It’s officially Spring!  Birds are chirping, flowers blooming, and “Home for Sale” signs as plentiful as dandelions on your lawn after a rain shower. Wait! What? The calendar says Spring but that is apparently fake news since I am looking out the window at 18 inches of snow we were just gifted and shaking my head.The truth is the only Robin I saw was wearing a parka and snow boots. Not a single crocus is shoving a brightly hued head out of the earth. Even the forsythia has yet to bloom. And Home For Sale signs are not so plentiful at all with inventory levels of available homes at an all-time low in the Twin Cities.However, what I have witnessed is an army of serious home buyers out in the marketplace. Yes, a plethora of buyers whose pockets are bulging with pre-approval letters, down payments and closing costs. Isn’t that great? It depends. It’s outstanding if you are a seller. 

The Twin Cities Housing Theme is Short on Supply, Big on Demand

Right now there is an extraordinary imbalance in the Minneapolis-St. Paul real estate market which favors sellers under the $500,000 price point in a big way, and I'm talking really big! New listings in March were down 17.5% compared to last year at this time and inventory of homes down 26.1%. That translates into 1.7 months supply of inventory. So what exactly does that mean? If no new listings enter the market it would take 1.7 months to sell out what was currently available. A balanced market is considered to be 5 or 6 months of inventory supply. So that gives you a really good picture of how restricted the inventory of homes has become. Still, buyers are as persistent as they are plentiful and consequently homes are being sold in record time at record high prices with updated and desirable homes commonly going above list price.

Sellers Are in Control, But For How Long?

Now is a great time to sell but no one can predict how long that will remain the case. The long-promised rise in interest rates has arrived. A 30 year fixed rate right now is at 4.5%, still historically a great bargain, but the Fed has indicated they plan two more increases this year. On the national financial scene, the Dow is fluctuating up and down and trade wars are looming so we have no idea when consumer confidence in the economy might go from “boom town” to less enthusiastic. Whether you are a potential move up buyer, a Boomer wanting to downsize, a family that wants a new neighborhood, or just going through a transitional life experience, now might be your last best chance to take advantage of this outstanding market situation. If you have been on the fence watching the market the past 3 years and wondering if this is the time I should sell you should ask yourself, if not now, when? 

Do You Feel Like You Live in a Hobbit-Sized Home?

When you purchased your charming starter home, it was just you and your partner and it was everything you wanted and needed. Soon you added a pair of adorable Labradoodles to your family. Next came a couple of even more adorable little humans. Now that perfect space that seemed like more than enough can scarcely contain your family and all your stuff. If this sounds like your situation, your time to sell has arrived. The good news about buying a move-up home right now is that your starter home is in high demand and your move up home, especially if above $500,000 is in a close to balanced market.

Do You Feel As If You’re Rattling Around in Windsor Castle?

Maybe a castle is slightly over the top but if you are afflicted with empty-nest syndrome, with the kids grown, gone and establishing their own dynasties, the perfect time for downsizing has arrived. A smaller home brings lower costs, less responsibility and more money in your pocket and time to enjoy it. If your choice is to get away from yard chores and snow removal altogether this is a great time to purchase a townhome. The Townhome market segment for new construction in the Twin Cities is hot right now. Multi-family new construction was up a 42% in February when compared to last year. This increase in townhome inventory provides more options for the empty nester who wants to downsize. This may be the incentive you need to sell now.  

Have You Lost That Loving Feeling?

Were you madly in love when you first moved into your current home only to find the years have brought life changes that find you re-evaluating your feelings?

Perhaps what made it a great choice was proximity to your job but now you have another position located across town. Maybe your heart’s desire was to live in a particular neighborhood that you couldn’t afford at the time but now you can. Maybe you bought in the burbs only to realize you are an urbanite at heart. Or perhaps it’s the opposite and you are tired of city life and yearn for a bit more space, a garden, less traffic. Whatever your situation, if you are not feeling the love for your home any longer, it’s perfectly ok to get a “divorce” from your current house. 

Spring – a Season of New Beginnings 

If you have been thinking about a major lifestyle change but the responsibility of homeownership and a large mortgage has been holding you back, now is your time. Maybe your dream is about a quiet life in a cabin on a lake up North where you can write the novel you know is inside you. Maybe you have always wanted to see the country traveling from place to place in a mobile home. Perhaps you have dreamed of living abroad and experiencing a new culture and a new exciting life. Or your heart’s desire may be to start your own business. Whatever your goals might be, if the equity in your home can finance it, there may never be a better time. Your situation is unique and your challenges and opportunities your own and no one else’s. Believe you can and you will. If you want to sell your home to begin the next chapter in your life, we have a plan to help you do it.

 

 

 

 

 

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