Some unfortunate statistics
I came across an article on the News and Observer website that only confirms what I’ve been preaching for some time now…home sales are way down.
Home sales down 27% from last year
Home sales in the Triangle slumped badly in the third quarter as the market continued to suffer from a lack of consumer confidence and the lingering effects of the federal homebuyer tax credits.
For the three months that ended Sept. 30, home sales in Durham, Johnston, Orange and Wake counties were down 27 percent from the same period a year ago, Triangle Multiple Listing Services data show.
With showings also off 27 percent and pending sales down 32 percent, most real estate agents expect the market to remain soft until at least the spring.
As alarming as those numbers are, homes are still selling as long as they are priced well, staged well, and in excellent condition. Take this August AP article, also from the News and Observer website:
Home will sell if the price is right
The good news for sellers: Your house will sell. The bad? Only if the price is just right.
That could mean biting down hard and slashing tens of thousands from your ideal listing price if you’re serious about selling. And you should be prepared to get even less than that.
Of course, none of this is helping our sellers sleep at night, but it does help that our sellers won’t spend what little equity they have left on a listing agent’s commission. If you’re in a tough spot, have little or no equity and need to sell, give me or Courtney a call…we’d love to help you out.
