San Diego’s residential housing inventory is down to a 2.5 month supply. We currently have less than 6,500 active (detached) listings down from over 11,000 last November. Open houses are booming and multiple offers are common for properties that are priced right. Short sales and foreclosures are not yet a thing of the past, but many of the listings in Metro San Diego are traditional equity sales.
If you’re waiting for official data to surface to be certain that this is true then you just might miss the boat. In fact, it seems clear that the bottom of our market is in the rear view mirror already. All we need now is for mortgage rates to tick up a bit, and they will, and latent buyers will come out of the woodwork.
So what do sellers need to do to make sure they get the best price in today’s market? First things first, call your local Realtor and make sure they really are local. They should know your neighborhood better than you do including all the other local agents who likely have pre-proved buyers in their back pockets. Then prepare your home for it’s close up and don’t wait until you have been on the market for a month. Be proactive and prepare in advance.
It’s highly advisable to consult with a stager to knows what improvements will get the best bang for the buck. Your Realtor should have a referral for you or may be able to provide the objective advice you need. Order a pest report, fill out your seller’s disclosures in advance, do a pre-sale home inspection, have professional photos taken and most of all, do not over price it. Citing a recent sale in University Heights that was priced according to the comparable sales at $799K. It received about a dozen offers, went into contract in less than a week for $900K and closed. What did the sellers do right? They did all of the above mentioned items but they did not overprice it. Luckily the buyer paid cash so appraised value was not an issue.
Using big city tactics as in New York and San Francisco is also a tried and true method. My experience in San Francisco taught me that a conservative price point will be more likely to garner multiple offers. And with the possibility of overbids, the listing should go into contract at an acceptable price and with back up offers in place.
Spring break is over, taxes are filed, our weather is almost perfect and low mortgage rates are holding for the time being. There are hungry buyers hitting the streets with cash and with mortgage pre-approvals in hand. Ask your local specialist for a price evaluation. You may be surprised.