House inventory has dramatically increased in Northern Virginia. Buyers have more options. Real Estate Agents & Sellers alike… You need to watch this video blog for tips and tricks to help sell the home. Want to talk about your property in specific? Call Scott MacDonald (703) 652-5777 or email scottmacdonald@remax.net read more… https://scottymacsblog.com/
Residential inventory of houses for sale in Northern Virginia is beginning to pick up and the Washington Wizards kicked off the playoffs with their first win! Get all the stats here and everything you need to know to set yourself up for success! Are you buying or selling? Contact Scott MacDonald (703) 652-5777 scottmacdonald@remax.net to find out the best strategies to put yourself ahead in this housing market.
RE/MAX Gateway
The inventory of homes for sale in Northern Virginia is growing quickly. You need to know how to set yourself up for success in this Spring real estate market! Are you buying or selling? Contact Scott MacDonald (703) 652-5777 or email scottmacdonald@remax.net for information and strategies to put yourself ahead in this housing market.
RE/MAX Gateway
Thinking of buying or selling a home in Northern Virginia? Scott MacDonald of RE/MAX Gateway offers valuable information to home sellers, buyers, and REALTORS and what is driving the real estate housing market in his video blog Scott’s Market Minute.
If you are thinking of selling in 2014, now is the time to get the answers to your questions. Contact Scott MacDonald (703) 652-5777 There’s still time to get your home listed for sale in this early Spring market!
Buyers, the resale home inventory is very low and rates are beginning to climb, now is the time to buy a home! Email Scott for a free optimized homes for sale search engine or list. ScottMacDonald@remax.net or read more… https://scottymacsblog.com/
RE/MAX Gateway
We currently have a 1.8 month supply of houses on the market in Northern Virginia.
Interest rates remain low so buyers are buying homes and jobs in the DC Metro area continue to be created so people are looking for housing in our market. We expect this trend to continue for the next several months. Sellers are in the proverbial driver seat if they do the right things to their property before putting it on the market. If you are considering selling your house, read more below…
As I mentioned, right now our biggest issue is finding houses to sell. We currently have 3,850 properties for sale in all of Northern Virginia – down from a high of the last year when we had 6,005 in the second week of October. That is a 36% decrease in houses for sale in just 3 months. We expect more properties to come on the market as the ice and snow melt, as well as, into the spring market but we have a lot of people looking so I don’t see that it will have a huge impact in regards to our inventory level moving forward.
The low inventory situation has resulted in multiple contracts on properties that are in great shape, priced well and show well. As properties come on the market that are in the same situation, they too will have multiple contracts. Therefore, buyers need to be prepared. We have developed a strategy to help buyers position their contracts to win when in competitive situations – check out my blog to learn more – www.scottymacsblog.com simply search for multiple contracts or click the link here. Sellers need to seek our advice when selling so we can help stage the house, give direction on what improvements/repairs need to be made and to price the home properly so they can take advantage of the market.
As always, I am available to answer any questions you may have in regards to your personal situation so feel free to contact me anytime.
RE/MAX Gateway, LLC
(703) 652-5777
scottmacdonald@remax.net
Scott MacDonald of RE/MAX Gateway offers valuable information for home buyers, home sellers, and real estate agents on the Northern Virginia real estate market trends.
What is driving the real estate housing market? Watch Scott’s Market Minute.
Want to know how to increase your odds of multiple offers? Sellers are urged to price houses competitively and make repairs as recommended by an experienced REALTOR, as this will help to ensure the home shows well to prospective home buyers. Contact Scott MacDonald (703) 652-5777 ScottMacDonald@remax.net
Now is a great time to list your home for sale!
RE/MAX Gateway, LLC
Low inventory and multiple offers – listen as Scott MacDonald explains the current housing market from both buyer and seller perspective. Scott offers practical advice to homeowners who are thinking of selling, as well as, market trends and forecast for the Northern Virginia Real Estate Market.
Contact Scott MacDonald (703) 652-5777 scottmacdonald@remax.net to learn more about your specific real estate market or read scottymacsblog.com/
October took the real estate market roller coaster ride.
Rates went up, rates came down. Sales went down, sales went up. Inventory rose, inventory came back down.
In some areas, the number of multiple contracts went down, then they went back up. Inventory of short sales and foreclosures were down, then they rose but luckily by not too much. The government shut down and the government opened back up – luckily, it was not too long and did not have a tremendous impact on the housing market.
Our emotions went up, our emotions came back down, as there was a lot of concern about delays in closings associated with the shut down because of the reduced number of employees at FHA and the IRS, but we avoided a potential disaster there. Additionally, we were worried about the government defaulting on their debt which would have sent interest rates skyrocketing, and again, fortunately, this did not happen.
Even though there were so many ups and downs, the market in October this year was still better compared to a year ago. There were more home sales, higher home prices and more homes for sale for buyers to choose from, although the uncertainty skewed people’s perception. So now you know why October was such a roller coaster for real estate.
What lies ahead on the horizon as we enter the winter market? My belief is we will be in our typical winter market. Homes will come off the market for the holidays. Motivated, savvy buyers will be out buying homes. Interest rates will remain in the low 4% range. Home prices will continue to stabilize throughout the Northern Virginia area. Houses that are priced right, in the right condition and right location will see multiple offers and our market won’t be as up and down as it was in October. Basically, we will continue to have a robust housing market locally.
To learn more about your situation, please feel free to call me today. Scott MacDonald (703) 652-5777.
RE/MAX Gateway, LLC
Wow, where did September go? It was a very interesting month – kids went back to school, football season started, the weather has changed, the housing market remained strong and the government shut down for the first time in 17 years.
It will be interesting to see how the stock market reacts to the government shutdown, what the impact will be on rates, the housing market and how long it lasts. If it is a quick shut down, we will probably see little reaction in the stock market and as a result, rates and the housing market. If it is a prolonged shutdown of a few weeks or more, the stock market will have a negative reaction, rates will rise as bond yields decrease and we could see a loss of momentum in the housing sector of the economy. What will happen to government backed loans in process and how will it affect settlements? None of these are helpful to our economy since the housing recovery leads the economic recovery as a whole. At this time, it appears as if this could last longer than just a day or two so let’s get prepared for a rocky economic road the next few weeks.
Let’s talk about the real estate market in September. We did see a pickup in sales over last year in Northern Virginia. Inventory increased slightly which gave buyers more choices. As inventory increased, distressed properties made up a lower percentage of this increase which is great for home owners. New home sales continue their strong pace of sales. Interest rates came back down as the government eased off their threat of reducing their purchasing of mortgage backed securities and we still see multiple contracts on properties in certain price points and locations.
All in all, September was a good month for Northern Virginia real estate. We need this trend to continue, so let’s hope the shutdown gets resolved more quickly than it appears it will.
If you have any additional questions or concerns, please feel free to call me directly (703) 652-5777
RE/MAX Gateway, LLC
Why has the real estate market slowed down? In my opinion, it is a combination of a few factors.
First and foremost, it is interest rates. Over the last year, rates have risen nearly 1.5%. A lot of people say they can’t believe with rates so low, how people cannot qualify for a mortgage. Well this kind of increase will remove buyers from the market regardless of where the rates start and where they end up – 3.25 to 4.75 or 8 to 9.5. An increase in interest rates like this is going to have an impact on the market.
Also, house prices have increased by over 17% the last 3 years in our area. This price increase has also helped to eliminate buyers from the market. Higher prices in any area of our lives – cars, restaurants, food, etc. will eliminate buyers – it is a natural fact. Couple this with the interest rate increase and we have a slower market.
Additionally, there are fewer homes to choose from in the lower price points as well making it difficult for buyers to even find acceptable housing to purchase. There are only 1,210 properties priced below $300,000 in all of Northern Virginia and only 271 are single family homes, the rest are town houses or condos. If there are fewer options for entry into the market, there are going to be fewer sales thus slowing down the market.
The upcoming finance reform with QM, QRM, and Basel III the first of the year together with the easing of QE 3 leaves a lot of speculation about the future of rates and sequentially, the housing market. Keep a keen eye on these developments to measure their impact.
Well, let the numbers tell the story. The housing market today is not substantially different than this same time last year and everyone was excited about the market then. Funny how the brisk spring market with low inventory, low interest rates and multiple contracts has clouded the vision of some people. Inventory is up just 6% over last year – not a terrible or scary number. Sales are up in a week to week comparison to last year by 3.5% – a pretty good increase, right? The 2.1 month supply of homes is virtually the same as last year’s 2.0. Distressed property inventory has dropped 40% – which is a fantastic number. This has resulted in a majority of the increase in homes for sale being arm’s length transactions – another good thing. The last number to mention is properties that settled the last 30 days. We are up 14% over last year indicating we are actually experiencing more sales. So, if looked at from a long term perspective, our real estate market is actually doing pretty well. All this being said, we still need to price properties properly as well as get them in the right condition to get them sold for our clients.
Keep a positive outlook on the market, good things will happen. Now, go sell something!
RE/MAX Gateway, LLC
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