The Southern New England real estate market is a solid seller’s market, with no indications of that changing anytime soon. According to Shannon Buss, President of the Rhode Island Association of Realtors (RIAR), “I don’t think I’ve ever seen a stronger seller’s market going into the end of the year. For those thinking of listing their property for sale, there is definitely no need to wait for spring. The market hasn’t slowed down.”
With not enough homes listed for sale to meet the demand of prospective home buyers, it seems that Southern New England will carry the seller’s market through until at least spring 2021. In fact, according to RIAR, “Rhode Island’s single-family home sales were up 9.1% year-over-year and the median price of those sales hit $334,900, 13.5% higher than that of the third quarter of 2019.” Additionally, condo sales increased by 4.3% and out-of-state home buyers increased by 9.7%.
So, what does this mean for prospective home buyers this season? It means that when you are searching for a home in a seller’s market like this one, you need a plan established to avoid making common home buyer mistakes and potentially losing the home you want. We have collected a list of home buyer “To-Dos” that will be useful to remember as you search for your new home.
WORK WITH AN EXPERIENCED REALTOR
With competition fierce in our current seller’s market, working with an experienced realtor who knows time is of the essence could be the best choice you ever make. Working with an inexperienced realtor could mean the difference between getting the home you really want, and not. It is more important than ever to have the right real estate players on your side when potentially dealing with competition.
GET PRE-QUALIFIED FOR A MORTGAGE
To home sellers, serious potential home buyers will be pre-approved for a mortgage. When home sellers are reviewing offers, being pre-approved could mean the difference between a home seller accepting your offer or moving on to another offer. Pre-approved home offers have more credibility over competing ones where buyers did not take this step. Knowing what you can afford for a new home now will prove beneficial when it is time to make a purchase offer.
BE PREPARED FOR A BIDDING WAR
In a solid seller’s market, such as this, low-balling a home seller will likely be a huge waste of time. If you are serious about making an offer in a seller’s market, typically, you will need to come in with your highest and best offer. This is where working with an experienced realtor will pay off. Your realtor will have suggestions for you that will revolve around your exact situation. As a potential home buyer, having these conversations ahead of time with your realtor will be helpful when you are actually making your offer.
KEEP AN OPEN MIND & FORGET YOUR LIST OF DEMANDS
For lack of a better way of explaining, remember that in a seller’s market home buyers have relatively less power. This means prospective home buyers should set aside their list of perfection and understand that attaching conditions to a purchase offer could make your offer much less appealing to the home seller. Considering the home seller will most likely have multiple offers, potential home buyers need to decide what is most important to them. Home buyers may also need to be ready to accept some home seller requests at the same time. Although not always the case, being ready could save time when it counts most.
Choose Noonan Lombardi Realtors for all your Real Estate needs
Noonan Lombardi Realtors operates one of the most successful real estate teams for home sales, property management and rentals in Rhode Island, Connecticut, and Massachusetts. Our advertising and social media presence are second to none, giving each client the backing of exceptionally experienced realtors waiting to work with you for all your real estate needs. We use top-of-line resources to make all your property dreams come true. Call us today (401) 580-8672 to find out what you could sell your home for & if you are ready to find your new home in Southern New England.