Why Now is a Better Time to Sell Than You Thought

January 17th, 2012 by Anne West
Categories: North Shore market data, Real estate

Apparently only 7% of people think that now is a good time to sell a home, which is an all-time low according to Mary Umberger’s article in Sunday’s Chicago Tribune called “Lousy Market? Blame Sellers.”

Ms. Umberger interviewed Syracuse University Professor Gary Engelhardt about his study “The Great Recession and Attitudes Towards Homebuying.” The upshot of the study is that, while most people think it’s a great time to buy a house, almost no one thinks it’s a good time to sell. Inventories of homes for sale have fallen 20% nationally since last year, in part because many would-be sellers have decided not to list their homes until market values improve.

These would-be sellers tend to fall into two categories: a) they are unrealistically tying their pricing expectations to a past market in which their house was worth considerably more, and have not been able to come to terms with the current reality; or b) they are underwater on their mortgage and are stuck because they can’t afford to bring cash to the closing table to make up the difference between what they could sell their home for and what they owe on it.

But here’s what reluctant sellers need to understand: home prices are not going to approach 2006 levels for a long time. In fact, most economists are predicting that prices will be basically flat for at least the next two years before beginning a gradual upward climb.

So, if you are a potential seller who is not underwater and does have equity in your home, now may be a really good time to list it. There will be less competition because so many people are underwater and can’t sell now. Will you get as much for your home as you’d like or as much as you would have a few years ago? No, but you will probably be able to sell it quickly if it’s in good condition and in a desirable location. You’ll fare especially well if your house is the kind and size that would appeal to first time home buyers or downsizing baby boomers.

If you’d like to find out what your home is worth in the current market, give us a call at 847-881-6657. We’d be glad to give you a complimentary, no obligation home evaluation. You can also get a free, quick, over-the-net home evaluation here.

Tags: selling your home

This entry was posted on Tuesday, January 17th, 2012 at 9:08 pm and is filed under North Shore market data, Real estate. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

Omni Chaparala said at January 18th, 2012 at 11:49 am
Good insight regarding why it is a good time to sell for a home owner who is not underwater and whose home is in a desirable location.