Car Dealers Have Been Doing THIS for YEARS!!!
Kent brings up a good point on his post. i have gotten numerous letters stating that there is a buyer for my used car. I do have a post card that I have mailed out with the similar statement to home owners in my farm areas.
You've probably gotten mail and phone calls from various car dealerships throughout the region over the past several years stating that inventory is low and they "need your car" to sell.
Now Real Estate Agents are trying the same! From south Charlotte to Lake Norman, homeowners across the region are opening their mailboxes to find notices with an attention-grabbing message: If you want to sell your house, someone may be ready to buy.
It’s not a new technique for real estate brokers. But it’s a tool they’re using more frequently these days as the supply of homes for sale remains stubbornly low across the Charlotte region.
Some brokers are sending letters to entire neighborhoods, telling every homeowner they have a client lined up. Other inquiries are more focused, targeting specific streets or even a specific house that a buyer desires.
Still other brokers have skipped the letters – instead knocking on a homeowner’s door to see if they want to sell.
It all underscores that Charlotte’s housing sector remains firmly a sellers market: Prices are rising, and inventory isn’t keeping pace with demand.
Many would-be sellers still owe more than their homes are worth, prompting them to wait for prices to rise further before they sell, agents say. Builders aren’t putting new homes on the market as fast as they did before the housing crash.
Meanwhile, buyers are ready to move ahead before interest rates rise further.
Colin Feehan, president of the Scaleybark Place homeowners association, said residents of the south Charlotte townhouse development received letters a few weeks ago from a real estate agent who had a potential buyer. Feehan said the person was interested in buying one of the development’s larger units, but none of those were for sale.
“This is the first time this has happened to us, these letters,” said Feehan, who has lived in the development for four years. Feehan recieved a letter but said he has no intention of selling.
Supply Shortage ...
The inquiries come at a time when the Charlotte region, like other parts of the U.S., has tight inventories of existing and new homes for sale, which is frustrating buyers and brokers.
In October, the 18-county region had a 5.3-month supply of existing homes for sale, according to the Charlotte Regional Realtor Association. A year ago, the region had a 6.9-month supply, down from 10.4 months’ worth two years ago. A widely accepted definition of a housing market in equilibrium is one that has a six-month supply.
"Underwater Homeowners" – those who owe more than their properties are worth – have no incentive to sell now. If they did, they might walk away with a loss. So they’re counting on prices to rise further.
Supplies for newly built homes in the Charlotte region are also low, according to Metrostudy, a company that tracks new-home construction trends. In the three months that ended Sept. 30, the region’s supply of unoccupied new homes was at 1.6 months’ worth. That category includes homes that might be under contract as well as those that haven’t sold.
Bill Miley, Charlotte market director for Metrostudy, said equilibrium for unoccupied new homes is a supply of two to three months. The current supply is the lowest it’s been since Metrostudy opened its Charlotte division in 2000, he said.
“There’s not enough finished homes out there that can close. We have an inventory shortage, really, in Charlotte,” Miley said, adding that builders are being conservative about housing starts after having to deeply discount an oversupply of homes as recently as 2010.
As always, The Temple Team is ready and waiting to help you with all of your Real Estate Needs. Contact us anytime at 704-235-3000 or visit our website at www.TheTempleTeam.com.
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