Oklahoma is an interesting place to live. We're located in the middle part of the country. We're pretty conservative. We have people from all over the place who live here. And our cost of living is very low and usually very stable.
Usually, our local economy follows the national economy. For example, here in Owasso, our housing market seemed to bottom out in July of 2010. Phones quit ringing. Sales were off - way off. And Realtors® started talking about how they might have to look for other work so they could eat. In the meantime, the national economy had already been in recession for quite some time.
Our slow housing market market was probably tied to the end of the second government housing stimilus program. But after we hit bottom in Owasso in July 2010, we began a slow climb back to life. By December 2010 my phone was ringing and I ended up closing four deals that month. For December, that is spectacular!
Today, let me share with you some signs that life is returning to the Owasso Oklahoma Real Estate market.
1. First, the phone is now ringing again. And not just my phone, but phones throughout the office. You can hear others talking to clients about buying and selling. Realtors® phones don't ring when people are not buying and selling houses. But when the public becomes engaged in the home buying and selling process again and the phones begin ringing that can only mean one thing...the housing market is coming back to life!
2. Open house traffic is increasing. At my open house this past Sunday, I had six families come through. Six may not sound like very many, but given the zero to one that I've been having, six is huge! And that brings me to my next point.
3. Buyers are back! For most of 2010 I worked with sellers and had very few buyers. In fact, hardly anyone had any buyers. But now I'm being contacted by buyers in open houses, by phone and through my websites and other social media marketing avenues. I've only been in Real Estate since 2007, but it's beginning to feel like the kind of a market that existed way back in the good old days again.
4. Listings are up company wide. A recent update from our corporate office indicated that our new listings are up 40% over the same time last year.
5. Finally, I heard my first ad on the radio the other day for getting a mortgage from xyz mortgage company because rates are great, etc. I haven't heard one of those "spammy" type commercials since I don't know when. A mortgage company spending money on radio or tv ads used to be pretty common. But it went away when the market died. Now that someone is spending that type of money again, it is a pretty good indication that they are seeing an increase in their business too.
So there you go. Life in the middle part of the United States seems to be starting to come back to life. In Owasso Oklahoma in particular, we have stable housing prices, great value for the money, a strong family oriented community and some of the nicest people you'll ever meet.
If you're moving to the Owasso, Oklahoma area, contact me and I'll be glad to visit with you about our wonderful city! Owasso Oklahoma is a great place to call home!
Originally Posted at: My Owasso Home
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