2nd Quarter Sacramento Real Estate Update

The market is still hot in Sacramento as we head into the second quarter. Home sellers can benefit from the low inventory and high demand while buyers can benefit from extremely low interest rates.

 Thinking of selling? Get a free home valuation

 Thinking of buying a home? Search all homes for sale on the MLS

Today let's take a look at what's going on in the market as we head into the second quarter.

The market is still extremely hot in terms of low inventory and high demand for homes from buyers. Without much to choose from, we're seeing multiple offer situations in certain price ranges and certain areas depending on desirability. In fact, we sold two of our recent listings above full list price before they even hit the market!

That said, it's still a great time to buy or sell a home with interest rates still low. Yes, the Fed did increase the interest rate by 0.25% recently, but rates are still extremely low from a historical perspective. Money is still cheap for a home loan.

“

Even with low inventory, the low interest rates make now a great time to buy a house.

”

If you want to sell your house, you can definitely take advantage of this seller's market and the low interest rates to move into your new house. This will be advantageous by saving you lots of money in the long term whether you're upsizing or downsizing.

Even with the market favoring sellers this strongly, you might be thinking that you don't want to sell your house because you'll have to compete to buy your next home. However, we have specific marketing strategies we use to help our clients get into homes in multiple offer situations that other agents and teams can't offer you.

If you have any questions about the Sacramento market or how we can help you take advantage of it whether you're buying or selling a house, give me a call or send me an email. I'd be more than happy to help!

What Do We Need to Watch in the Sacramento Spring Market?

As we head into the spring market, there are a few key points you should keep an eye on if you plan to buy or sell a home in the near future.

 Thinking of selling? Get a free home valuation

 Thinking of buying a home? Search all homes for sale on the MLS

What can you expect as we head into the spring market? There are a few things in particular that we want to pay attention to.

The first is inventory. As we head into the spring market, we'll see many sellers come out of hibernation after holding off on selling through the winter and the holidays. You can expect to see more homes come on the market, but inventory is still at an all-time low.

The absorption rate tells us what kind of market we're in. We calculate it by figuring out how long it would take to sell existing active inventory if no new houses came on the market. Looking at absorption rates from the past couple months—especially December—we see that we're at just one month. A regular market would be four to six months of inventory.

“

It's still a great market for both buyers and sellers.

”

Based on the 1.1 month absorption rate from December, we can see that we're in a seller's market. Anything below four months of inventory is considered a seller's market.

The second point to keep an eye on is that even though it's a seller's market due to low inventory, it's still a good market for buyers thanks to such low interest rates. Rates have crept up a little bit recently, so we'll want to watch whether rates continue to rise.

Rising rates can affect a buyer's purchasing power; a buyer who could qualify for a $400,000 home would only qualify for a $370,000 house if interest rates went up 1%. This could also put some downward pressure on home prices, but I'm not saying that will happen quickly. Historically speaking, though, interest rates are still really good and buyers will want to take advantage of it.

These are the key things you should look out for in the spring market this year. If you have any other questions about the Sacramento market or you're thinking of buying or selling a home, give me a call or send me an email soon. I'd love to hear from you!

5 Questions That Will Help You Find the Perfect Agent

Asking the right questions is the best way to find the right agent when selling your home. Today, I've put together the five most important questions you should ask to find the right agent.

 Thinking of selling? Get a free home valuation

 Thinking of buying a home? Search all homes for sale on the MLS

When you sell your home, you want to find the best agent possible to help you get a great deal.

There are five questions you should ask to make sure you find the best agent to help you sell your home:

1. How long have you been selling homes? You obviously wouldn't want to go to a doctor who is fresh out of medical school to take care of a serious operation. The same is true in real estate—you don't want to work with someone fresh out of real estate school to handle your $500,000 home.
2. How many homes did you sell last year? A lot of agents like to use the data from their brokerage, which doesn't truly represent the numbers that they personally put up from last year. Be sure to ask them for data specifically about the transactions they were responsible for. A newer agent who sells 30 to 40 homes a year will have more experience than a veteran agent who only sells one or two homes a year because the newer agent is more in tune with the current market, thanks to the fact that they're negotiating more transactions at the moment.



“

Make sure they have a plan to keep you informed before, during, and after the transaction.

”



3. How are you going to market my home? This is important because it's the specific reason why you're hiring a particular agent—to get the most exposure in the market. Make sure they come with a step-by-step strategic marketing plan to get your house the exposure that you need to sell your home for top dollar in the least amount of time with the least amount of hassle.
4. Will you represent me exclusively? In California, an agent is allowed to represent a seller, a buyer, or both. Make sure you understand the concept of dual agency, and if your agent is doing this, that you understand the nuances and details involved in the transaction.
5. How will you keep me informed? Communication is so important. You want to make sure they have a plan to keep you informed before, during, and after the close of the transaction.

These five questions will really help you find the best agent to sell your home.

If you have any questions we can help you with, or you're looking to buy or sell a home in the Sacramento market, give me a call or send me an email. I'd be happy to help.