Realtor.com® recently released their Winter Home Buyer Report during the first part of November. This report reflected sentiments of current buyers looking for homes and expecting to buy over the winter months. The report shows a pent-up demand among buyers that were unable to buy during the third quarter of this year.
Cited the most in the report was the fact of low inventory and how that was impending purchase efforts. There is a strong buyer demand but a short supply of homes which in turn has been increasing home prices.
“This summer and spring home buying season was particularly challenging for buyers, especially first-time home buyers trying to compete with all-cash offers and bidding wars because of reduced inventory. In fact, a quarter of the winter home buyers revealed they are in the market now because they were unable to find a home during this last home buying season,” said Alison Schwartz, vice president of corporate communications at REALTOR.com®. “While buyers are still experiencing challenges with inventory and approximately one in five buyers plan to put down all cash, there are advantages to looking for a home in the winter. Motivated sellers, better prices and less competition between buyers are some of the top reasons winter home buyers are interested in purchasing a home during the colder months of the year.”
Here are a few interesting stats taken from the above mentioned report:
Major challenges of searching for a home during the winter months:
• 34% shared that the inventory is too low
• 29% believe that winter weather makes house hunting unpleasant
Historically, the real estate community has experienced that during the fourth quarter of the year, sales volume is lower. They attribute this to holiday distractions and sellers not wanting to move during winter weather. There seems to be this mindset against moving in the winter even in the areas that don’t experience winter weather changes.
But if you are a motivated seller and are willing to take a chance on the winter weather, it might be very advantageous for you to get your home on the market now. Competition will be lower and you will beat the rush that usually happens after January 1st for the spring shoppers.
I can help you find motivated sellers with Fairfax homes for sale this month! Contact me at (703) 222-6714 today.