DALLAS-AREA HOME PRICESSTILL RACING AHEAD OFNATIONAL RATE

KELLY PEARSON

k e l l y s e l l s n o r t h t e x a s . c o m

If you thought about selling your house thisyear, now may be the time to do it. Theinventory of homes for sale is well belowhistoric norms and buyer demand isskyrocketing. We were still in high schoolwhen we learned the concept of supply anddemand: the best time to sell something iswhen supply of that item is low and demandfor that item is high. That defines today’sreal estate market.

Jonathan Smoke, the Chief Economist ofrealtor.com, in a recent article revealed that:

“Would-be buyers face a dilemma: There will bemore homes on the market over each week ofthe next three to four months, but there will alsobe even more prospective buyers. We areentering the busiest season of home buying withthe lowest amount of inventory in three years.To be competitive, buyers should get pre-approved for a mortgage and be ready to actquickly if they find a home that meets theirneeds.”

Smoke goes on to say:

“Listings are growing as they normally do thistime of the year, but because demand has beengrowing faster than supply, homes are sellingfaster. So the monthly trend is the normalseasonal pattern, but the year-over-year declineis reflective of demand being stronger than supplyfor more than a year, which is resulting in fewerhomes available and faster-moving inventory.”

In this type of market, a seller may hold amajor negotiating advantage when itcomes to price and other aspects of the realestate transaction including the inspection,appraisal and financing contingencies.

Bottom Line

As a potential seller, you are in the driver’sseat right now. It might be time to hit thegas. However, there are still right things,and wrong things sellers can do. Alwayswork with a real estate professional whenselling a home.