3.25.2014

It's Weird Out There....

Every year I think I've seen it all. Every year I'm wrong. In 2014 in Indianapolis we've had the worst Winter I can remember since I started in the Real Estate profession 28 years ago. Huge snow falls, brutal cold temps and buyers that were hesitant to say the least about trudging through the snow to see homes for sale. Side note...if you know a Realtor who says the market is on fire call them out. They're full of crap. In our metro we're down about 26% in units sold from a year ago. In January that was not a big deal. In February that was not a big deal. Heading towards April it's getting to be a big deal. We will still have a very active Spring and Summer barring geopolitical or economic events that spike mortgage rates but year to year I'm not sure we're going to have a year that mirrors or exceeds 2013. There's simply too much ground to make up with one quarter behind us. Oddly as we are inventory deficient some homes are languishing. Why? There are plenty of buyers so the answer is very simple...remaining properties are tired or they're overpriced. Homes that are not spiffed and ready to go will sit especially if they're owner is not overly motivated on price. That's not a message you want the market to hear about your property. Sellers...buyers are still picky. Want to get to closing? Price it to sell or have something so spectacular the market can't let it sit. Three months down in '14 with nine to go. No time to waste for any of us in housing for the remaining months of this year. 
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