Still Time to Be Home for the Holidays

 Today is Veterans Day, and that marks, for us in real estate, the beginning of the rush toward the end of the calendar year.  There are about seven weeks left, and that's just enough time to buy before December 31st.  But not with too much time to spare!

As we've often posted, transactions can proceed more quickly in this season.  The holidays won't be the same this year, but that means that more people can move, because they won't be giving or attending so many parties--hopefully not any.  Days off at this juncture--and many people saved vacation days and then couldn't use them, so need to take them now--can be devoted to packing and unpacking.  Long weekend days, that used to be full of errands, brunch, gyms, and shopping, can now be used getting a house ready for inspection, or for decorating your new home.

This year in particular, buyers who have been waiting should be motivated to act now, since restrictions on activities have been increasing, not loosening.  If you are going to be in lockdown, or working/studying from home, don't you want it to be in the home you've been craving?  Get the space you need soon, so that you can enjoy it in the months ahead.  

Real estate is almost alone among industries (except, of course, for delivery services) in having a boom year.  Don't expect that you will get a bargain, even as the traditional selling season wanes.  Supply is very short--about one month in most of our New Haven/Middlesex region.  That means that you should jump on anything you see that meets your needs.  Consider not just what you think the "market price" should be, but what it's worth to you.  With all those extra hours at home, you can amortize the cost of your new home easily.  In addition, with such low interest rates, you will be able to buy more at the same monthly payment amount.

Many people sat on the sidelines for the past few weeks, mesmerized by the election.  It's over, and the year is almost over also.  It's time to find, if not your forever home, your pandemic place.  It's out there, waiting for you to make it your home for the holidays. 

What Happened to the Middle of the Market?

We just had our Pearce Annual Meeting last week, and we talked about the current state of the market in Connecticut.  Greater New Haven, and especially Middlesex County, are better off than the other counties, since they are both up.  Fairfield is down the most, which is related probably still to the GE move, and maybe to SALT no longer being deductible.  Even in South Central Connecticut, though, we see pockets of hot markets and pockets of slow ones.

First-time homebuyers are clearly out in force, and multiple offers are common below $300,000.  Even things that sold last year can fetch more today, because the supply hasn't increased; in fact, listings are down.  That's what drove the increases across the country in the past few years--lack of supply.  We're seeing it now.

The upper end, especially the areas near Yale or along the coastline, is hopping.  We don't have enough listings to show people, even as we approach the busiest time of the spring.  The waterfront sales, particularly between $1 and $2 million, seem to pop as soon as new properties go onto the MLS.  It could be that it's been seven years since the last major hurricane, or it could just be that, at these prices, waterfront seems very desirable. The volatility in the stock market could also be causing people to rethink their asset allocations, and buy second homes with some of the money that they would otherwise put into stocks, especially since they got back what they lost in the fourth quarter--they may be reaping the gains and reinvesting in real estate.

Between $500K and $1 million, however, we have seen many listings languish, even those that we feel are great properties and priced well.  It's also where there is, therefore and obviously, the most supply.  Part of that is due to baby boomers trying to downsize, with taste and property conditions that make millennials balk. The latter group wants perfect homes, decorated and finished to the latest in trends.  Perhaps the speed with which the upper and lower markets are moving will push some buyers into this price range, and that would be good news for everybody.  In the meantime, it's an anomaly, making market conditions hard to describe in terms that are too generic.