From the year-long pandemic and stay-at-home orders to the financial hardships and job losses, 2020 certainly won’t be remembered fondly by most. However, the new year brings new opportunities — especially for homeowners thinking of jumping into the real estate market!
There’s nothing but benefits for sellers in the current housing market. Home prices are on the rise and bidding wars are constantly increasing. Don’t dally, however, as real estate agents don’t expect these perks to last forever.
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High buyer demand stems from low interest rates
According to HomeLight’s Spring 2021 survey, 97% of real estate agents would describe their local housing market conditions as a seller’s market, while an overwhelming 93% noted that home prices are rising in their market.
So what’s the cause of these favorable conditions for sellers? The answer, quite simply, is extremely high buyer demand, which stemmed, mostly, from favorable mortgage interest rates.
Last December, mortgage rates reached a record low, which made the home-buying process much more affordable than it used to be. Buyers — who otherwise would have steered clear from the uber competitive market — jumped on the opportunity to secure a low interest rate.
These rates are rising slowly, but they’re still extremely low in comparison to normal market conditions, so we shouldn’t expect buyer demand to decrease any time soon.
Remote work and schooling sparks moves across the country
To put it simply, when workers aren’t tied to a specific location, moving to cheaper accommodations becomes very enticing. In 2020, many were given the opportunity to work remotely and some companies made this shift permanent. This gives workers the opportunity to seek affordable homes away from major cities with steeper home prices.
Others were forced to find alternative housing as their current residence no longer accommodated for work-from-home and school-from-home situations. Families, especially, sought homes with more space to accommodate for this new lifestyle. We shouldn’t see this trend dying down any time soon, as more and more companies are shifting to permanent remote work environments.
Why sellers were hesitant to enter the market in 2020
With rising home prices, homeowners should’ve jumped on the opportunity to sell profitably last year. However, the reason they chose to postpone their real estate endeavors boils down to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Oftentimes, selling a home requires heavy foot traffic in and out of your home. Many homeowners live in their home full-time during their selling process — so selling your home means possibly bringing a deadly virus into a home where young children and older grandparents may habit daily. Understandably, most homeowners didn’t want to take the risk.
This hesitance won’t remain forever. Vaccine distribution is already starting to have an effect on many housing markets across the country, and most real estate agents predict that further vaccine distribution will only encourage more sellers to the market.
If you’re thinking of selling, now’s the time to dive head first into your real estate envours by contacting a trusted real estate agent today!
