Everyone is trying to figure out where they fit into this scary time in our industry. We have never seen times in the housing sector in the lives of most of the people we know, let alone those of us in the real estate business. In 15 years, I have seen a few short down times and still have been able to make a fair living. As with the .com bubble of the late 90's, it wasn't too hard to predict the outcome of over speculation in the housing market. Simple economics tells us that oversupply equals less demand and therefore, lower prices. In my own local market we have 11.4 months worth of inventory currently for sale. Simply stated, if no more houses come on the market, it will take us almost a year to sell through the properties on the market. Having said that, we are also seeing a reasonable average market time for properties that sell, which hasn't dramatically increased over the last 4 years. What this tells me is that if a home is market ready and positioned correctly in the marketplace, we will be able to find a buyer. The exception to that conclusion, however, might be subject to certain price ranges and number of sales in the last 6 months in that price range.
I have faith in the average homeowner in our country who buys a home, not for financial speculation, but for the quality of life for themselves and their families. One of the fastest growing demographics of home buyers in our country is single women along with immigrants. So, while we are seeing unprecedented foreclosure rates and short sales, I feel an obligation to focus on the American Dream and those who want to achieve it, rather than those who have exploited it for their own gain. It's unfortunate that many people have gambled and have lost. What's more unfortunate is that while there was a surge of speculation, some of those buyers were forced to overpay in some markets because market values were escalating at incredible rates. Anyone who had to move will tell you, they had no choice but to pay more for a home than they really wanted to. Those are the true losers in this bubble. What I school my sales associates on today is advising homeowners about the market they are in and to determine the reason they need to sell. If an owner can wait until next year to put their house on the market; they should. If all of us act responsibly and professionally as expert advisers in the largest investment of some people's lives, we would do everyone a favor by reducing inventory and stabilizing prices.
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