01 Feb Should I list my home now, or wait until Spring?
Should I list my home now, or wait until Spring?
I’m sure it’s the most commonly asked question between January 20th and March 1st! The answer is short and easy this year, List it now, List it now, List it now! I am confident this is the right answer because of 4 things.
1. Low inventory! Our current level of inventory is lower than it has been since 2006. The number of active listings dipped to 18,000 (+/- a few hundred) in 2005. We currently have 19,000 (+ a few hundred) homes actively listed on the market. Compare this level to 2008 when we reached 48,000 (+/-) active listings. This data is for the entire area covered by the Northstarmls system. The MLS covers a lot of geographic area including the entire 13 county Metro area.
This Beautiful Two Story in Burnsville just listed today! See photos in the featured listings.
2. Weather! Our unseasonably warm weather makes for happy home buyers! Buyer activity in the South of the River suburbs is picking up. Buyer activity usually increases noticeably during February and into March.
3. Beat the Foreclosure Wave! There are reports of large volumes of Foreclosures coming to the market soon! These reports stem from the ‘Ropo-signing’ incident last year. Many banks halted their foreclosure processes or slowed them down considerably to be sure they are complying with the law. This has created a backlog of foreclosures, coming to the market soon. I did read an article recently which said the way foreclosure homes are counted inflates these numbers. I’ll summarize that in a post soon.
4. Get Feedback! Listen to the feedback your home receives from potential buyers and make needed adjustments ! If you list your home sooner, you will have the added benefit of hearing the feedback from buyers and your listing agent. This allows you to correct any conditions, expand the marketing or adjust the price before the surge of Spring Market buyers has peaked. Read my previous post about Listen to the Feedback for more information.
Inventory Levels for our South of the River area look like this: (using all Active listings on Feb 1st, 2012 and using the number of homes Sold and Closed between Feb 1st – April 30th in 2011)
Homes for Sale in Apple Valley 221 Homes Sold in Apple Valley last year 157
Homes for Sale in Burnsville 227 Homes Sold in Burnsville last year 178
Homes for Sale in Farmington 140 Homes Sold in Farmington last year 104
Homes for Sale in Lakeville 272 Homes Sold in Lakeville last year 168
Homes for Sale in Eagan 217 Homes Sold in Eagan last year 147
Home for Sale in Prior Lake 223 Homes Sold in Prior Lake last year 98
Homes for Sale in Savage 137 Homes Sold in Savage last year 89
Homes for Sale in Rosemount 82 Homes Sold in Rosemount last year 78
This is a promising picture, the number of Homes Sold represents 3 months of buyer purchases. If we have as many buyers in Apple Valley this Spring as we did last year, we will sell 70% of the current inventory!
Each day new homes will be listed for sale, changing this chart rapidly. I’ll be curious to compare the number of Homes Sold South of the River in Spring 2011 to Spring 2012.
If you would like to know How Much your Home is Worth, let me know and we will be happy to get you on our schedule for an evaluation.
Read what Sheryl’s clients say about working with Sheryl and the Selling South of the River Team!
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