Blog
Category: <span>FOR SELLERS</span>
Home Prices, Election, Covid-19, Oh My!
It’s been quite a November and we’re only 13 days into it.
Many of us thought after November 3rd the Democrats and Republicans would stop their constant fighting and we’d know who the Presidential candidate would be sworn into office in January. To add to our worries, Covid-19 high positivity rates smacked us again.
But there is a bright light in our housing market.
People from around the country are buying homes where they’ve been vacationing. They’re buying homes in leisure destinations as permanent residences and as secondary homes. Our Palm Springs area is one of those destination hotspots. And we locals know why; weather, beautiful scenery, lifestyle, and fabulous homes at fantastic prices.
2020 has proven to be a very big year in the real estate market in the Coachella Valley. Buyers who had been waiting for “the right time” to purchase a home found this year to be that right time.
Our residential inventory is still very low in all prices points, with the exception of the uber high-end properties. If a property is priced correctly, based on its location, sun exposure, floor plan and other factors in its community, it will sell – and sell quickly. But even in this hot market, sellers must remember that buyers set market prices, not sellers. It is a sellers’ peril if they disregard this reality. If they do, they won’t sell their homes.
As we approach the holidays, realtors would generally see a slight slowdown before our January to April active season. However, since Covid-19 people keep streaming into the desert searching for their ‘desert dream home’.
There’s been a huge surge of sales in the detached home market. In the past 1-1/2 months, home sales experienced a 39.3% increase year-over-year. The average home sale is a tick over $600,000. In the $700,000 to $800,000 price bracket, sales increased 96%. In the million-dollar and over price bracket, sales went from an average of 45 units to over 110 units a month, an increase of 144%.
Entry level homes priced between $250,000 to $350,000 are very hard to find. If a single-family home comes on to the market in this price range, it won’t list for long. In this price range it’s easier to find a condo.
With the start of our selling season, we anticipate seeing more homes hit the market, which may ease some of the upward pressure on home sales. However, as with everything else this year, nothing is running its usual course.
Stay tuned. Stay connected.
Even with Covid-19 travel and home showing restrictions, homes in the Coachella Valley are selling fast.
Most sellers believe they must have Open Houses after listing it in the market, but do they bring in buyers?
If you’re thinking of selling your home in the Palm Springs area, You have to make sure your home has the right preparations to get the strongest offers.
Have you ever wondered what it takes to market and sell a home? In the “olden days” of real estate, the home would get listed in the classified section of the newspaper, and flyers and postcards would be mailed out. These days, however, require significantly more sophisticated ways of marketing homes for sale. In this video, Darlene Harwick, Realtor in the Palm Springs area, give tips about successful home marketing.
Tip 1:
While living across the street from the fairways offers a homeowner additional privacy (no neighbor in front), it also provides a bird’s-eye-view to golfers – especially those wandering through your yard to retrieve balls. Choose your location within the golf community carefully. Homes along the right side, nearest to the tee box, are statistically at higher risk for wandering golfers searching for errant balls and the damage those balls can cause. You may want to play the course to help determine if the home you have your eye on is ideally located.
Tip 2:
I stress the importance to all homeowners interested in purchasing a home in a managed community to read the HOA documents thoroughly, it’s even more critical when considering a home on a golf course. Is netting prohibited? Are there rules against entering the course from your property?
Tips 3:
While golf participation throughout the country is stabilizing, and fewer courses are closing, keep in mind that it’s still a buyers’ market in many communities in this real estate niche. You are in the drivers’ seat, by and large, in negotiations.
Tip 4:
You don’t have to be a golfer to enjoy golf course living. In fact, it’s estimated that only about a quarter of residents who live on or near courses play the game. They purchased the home to enjoy the scenic view, the enjoyment of not having a neighbor’s home facing theirs and the peaceful evenings.
Tip 5:
If you do play, you may want to restrict your search for a golf course home for sale to communities that offer other amenities as well, such as tennis courts, walking trails, swimming pools.
Thinking of selling your golf course home?
Realtor.com analyzed listings of homes for sale in 273 U.S. counties. They found that those listings that included the word “golf” took, on average, 75 days to sell. These homes eventually sold for 14 percent more than the median sale price for the area and nearly 30 percent more than the nationwide median home price.
Of course, all real estate is local and markets change so the “mileage” here in our area may vary. Feel free to reach out to me for a complimentary, no-obligation determination of your home’s likely market value.