Hello...
Whew! We made it into 2009. This has been a very unique time to be in our real estate industry. We have weathered the "perfect storm" of foreclosures bringing the median home value down, mortgage companies and banks folding- making lending somewhat non-existant, along with some of the highest unemployment rates most states have seen. NAR also reports that "The Pending Home Sales Index in the Northeast dropped 7.2 percent to 63.2 in November and is 14.6 percent below a year ago. In the Midwest the index fell 6.7 percent to 74.2 and is 10.1 percent below November 2007. The index in the South declined 2.2 percent to 85.3 in November and is 12.7 percent below a year ago. In the West, the index was down 2.4 percent to 101.2 but remains 19.3 percent higher than November 2007." So that's the past...
The start of 2009 has continued to be strong in our office. We have seen an increase in calls and new buyers since August and it seems the Holiday Season has continued to build steam in my market. Over the 2 weeks of Holidays, my office received a flurry of phones calls from the internet, signs, and paper ads. These buyers are for real also! I have been generating offers daily and seeing agent showings on my listings greatly increase. So take all of this activity and include a great interest rate on fixed 30yr loans, sounds like a good match!
How has your 2009 started? I'd love to hear what some of the real world statistics are as we head into a new market. What activity has your region been bearing? What price ranges are strong? Where are the buyers coming from? I've heard what the media has to say about our industry, but what are those of us putting in the hours on the front lines saying?! That's the real news!
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