It’s Super Bowl Sunday. And regardless of how you chose to spend it, I trust you will have an enjoyable day. Here in Reno the forecast calls for a beautiful, sunny, cloudless 50-degree afternoon.
For real estate agents Super Bowl Sunday has added significance. Or more specifically, the day after Super Bowl Sunday is noteworthy. That’s because the day after Super Bowl Sunday traditionally marks the start of the home buying season.
Home buying and selling activity always picks up considerably after the Super Bowl. Why? The holidays are over; the seasonal parties and events have ended; and prospective homebuyers begin to ramp up their search for a new home in time for Summer. Knowing this, prospective home sellers will begin to list their properties. And home sellers who may have taken their properties off the market for the holidays, will begin to re-list their homes. As one of our executives commented to me Friday evening as I was leaving the office, “Enjoy the game on Sunday, and then put your seatbelt on come Monday.”
Given the length of time of a typical escrow (30 – 45 days), much of the post-Super Bowl increased activity will not begin to appear as closed sales until March and April. But given the record-setting real estate activity of recent months, it’s difficult to fathom how sales activity can be even more brisk than it has been. Recall that units sold in November and December were the highest on record for those months (see November medians and December medians).
I, for one, will welcome an increase in inventory. Currently, many of my clients are finding it very difficult to find a house in some areas due to the limited inventory. And when a suitable property is found, my clients oftentimes have to compete with other buyers seeking to purchase the same property. I’ve mentioned this before on this blog; multiple offers are now commonplace. Consequently, I am seeing properties going into contract at prices above their asking prices [Note: this topic will be the subject of an upcoming blog post.] Additionally, for my clients who have been outbid on three, four and sometimes five properties, a change in their strategy has been necessitated. For example, offering to pay cash rather than purchasing via financing [Note: this too will be the subject of an upcoming blog post.]
In the meantime, enjoy the game, or the day as you see fit, and then “tomorrow put your seatbelt on”.
Catherine
Hum, interesting.
Mark M
After I read this blog, I decided to stop looking for a house. I don’t want to spend more to outbid others. No extra money to do that.
Goodnight_CommRow
Median prices will reflect what people can afford, period. Unless a return to no doc loans is on the horizon, there is zero chance for prices to take off, especially given the piss-poor economy in Nevada. Sorry REALTORS.
Norton
Goodnight, your point is one that has been said many times here before but that some just don’t want to hear. The “just pay more and while you’re at it pay cash” approach has some serious flaws but the some folks just don’t want to think about it. If all JSP has in cash is $30K down and all he can borrow is $120K, for a total purchase price of $150K, telling him to pay$160K in cash isn’t going to work. This is, however, apparently a difficult concept for some people to grasp.
Fence Sitter
I’ve seen it too, Guy. I have a conventional sale house to sell in newlans manor (old sw) this spring, and a comp just sold for $415k -at $200 a sq ft. (short sale). What are the neighborhoods your clients are requesting the most and bidding up? Will be listing it after it greens up ( that is if the drought hasn’t killed all the trees in old SW for all you pessimists).
My own house hunting has been bumpy, and yes, I’ve seen the ones I like sell quickly, but not above asking in my price range. There is a lot of REO crap and over – priced stuff (remember your own post a few weeks ago?) Although, a property was bought for 530k on MLS then flipped in 30 days (on a private financing deal?) for 615k (WAY over appraisal), flush with cash, but bad credit. Yes, they will still find a way to over-pay
Guy Johnson
Thank you for your comment, Fence Sitter. In answer to your question, one area in particular where my clients have found it difficult to enter into contract on a house is the South Meadows area (MLS #143). That area consistently has the greatest activity.
As I mentioned in the post above, I will be writing a a blog post soon where I compare all the areas that comprise the Reno-Sparks market on a sold-to-list price ratio.
Rufus
Reno South Meadows? Really?
I guess the following sellers didn’t get the memo about bidding wars:
525 Terracina Way
10330 Gold Rush Court
2589 Spring Flower Drive
10524 Iron Point Circle
2060 Black Sand Drive
All in South Meadows, and all PRICE REDUCED in the past 5 days.
Guy Johnson
Rufus,
Indeed one can always locate properties with a “price reduced” status. In addition to Price Reduced, our market also has the following Active status: New, Back on Market, Extended, and even Priced Raised – as currently exhibited with the property at 10690 Blue Moon Ct.
But regarding my comment above, here are five properties that have sold in the South Meadows area (since Jan. 1, 2012) at prices at or above asking…
13755 Seabiscuit Dr sold 100% of asking price
9681 Woodhollow Dr sold for 101% of asking price
425 Teramo Ct sold for 102% of asking price
1700 Northrup Ct sold for 103% of asking price
441 Oldenberg Ct sold for 153% of asking price
Rufus
Hey Guy, my point was simply that it is bogus to infer that a buyer cant’t find a house in South Meadows without having to engage in a bidding war. Obviously untrue, if there are sellers there dropping their asking prices.
But you are realtor I understand and I know it is difficult for you to stay away from the spinjive for very long.
Fence Sitter
Is that Oldenberg ct correct at 153 %? Sounds like either bad listing agent or psyco marketing / bidding frenzy
Guy Johnson
Fence Sitter, upon closer inspection of that particular listing (Oldenberg Ct), it appears that the asking price was inadvertently entered into the MLS system as $190K. Although the price was corrected to $290K with hours, the system recorded the original price as $190K. Interestingly, the property went into contract within three days and closed five weeks later at the full asking price of $290K. So, the ratio on this one should be 100%, not 153%.
Thanks for questioning that.