The Real Estate Mexican Standoff

Here is a quote from the First Quarter Market Report written by Dave Phillips CEO of the Charlottesville Association of Realtors.

"Simply put, there are too many homes on the market right now. This surplus of inventory should keep prices low as sellers are forced to offer “good deals” in a very competitive marketplace. There is a direct, inverse relationship between inventory and prices. The more homes we have on the market, the more pressure there is on sellers to keep prices down. For this reason, we do not expect home prices in the area to increase in the near future.

Currently, we have 3,673 homes on the market, compared to 3,100 at this time last year. The median price of these homes for sale is $319,000. The average DOM (days on market) of these homes is 147 days. It is a great time for first-time buyers, because there are 663 homes for sale under $200,000 with an average DOM of 130. There are 576 homes currently on the market priced at a million dollars or more, with an average DOM of 200."

This is a very accurate statement about the status of our market. It's almost as if buyers and sellers are in an old fashioned Mexican Standoff. Buyers continue to wait for prices to come down, while sellers are resisting the trend. I do have to take this opportunity to say THIS IS A GOOD TIME TO BUY REAL ESTATE.

Play the game, there are a number of people out there trying to move their money out of Real Estate and just want anything they can get. Make an offer, if they reject, move to the next one. In the words of NIKE, Just Do It. You can find really good deals in a market such as this.

Read the entire 1st Quarter Market Report