Demand for Real Estate is Much Stronger This Year

Demand for Real Estate is Much Stronger This Year

We are going to take a look at three reasons that now is the time to list your home if you are wanting to sell.  Today is part 1.  Parts 2 and 3 will be posted tomorrow and Thursday.

When selling anything, owners can only hope there is a strong demand for that which they are selling. The great news for today’s home sellers is that the current housing market is experiencing a stronger demand than we have seen in some time.

The  spring housing market of 2013 is projected to be one of the best in years.

Home Sales

The National Association of Realtors (NAR) reports monthly on both pending sales (houses going into contract) and existing home sales (actual closed sales).

In the first quarter of 2013, pending sales have consistently outperformed the numbers reported in 2012. Contract activity has been above year-ago levels for the past 22 months. Before this year, the last time the index showed a higher reading was in April 2010, shortly before the deadline for the home buyer tax credit.

NAR also revealed that closed home sales have been above year-ago levels for 20 consecutive months and sales are at the highest level since the tax credit period of 2009-2010.

Impact on Sellers

This increase in demand has created bidding wars for properly priced homes across the country. This has resulted in two favorable changes for home sellers:

1.      They are receiving offers closer to (if not greater than) the list price.

2.      The average days it takes to sell a home has dropped by over 20% from last year.

If you are thinking about selling your home, don’t miss out on the strong demand that exists in the current spring market.