It Won’t Cost You If You Wait It Out
A report from the Denver Post in Colorado. "Price declines are becoming much more widespread. A year ago, an unlucky seven Denver area ZIP codes failed to register annual home price increases in the first quarter, according to the DMAR data. This year, 26 lost value in the first quarter."
"The shift shows up in homes spending more time on the market, more listings adjusting lower in price and more homes selling below the original asking price. And it is showing up in a wider inventory of homes to choose from, even among those once scarce homes priced in the bottom tier of the market."
"Nina Kuhl, broker associate HomeSmart Cherry Creek, is seeing more buyers compare existing entry-level homes against what builders are offering and recalculating. 'For about the same price or a little bit more, I can get a new home and pick out my finishes,' she said of a view she is hearing more young buyers express."
"'Things are getting better for buyers,' said Trulia senior economist Cheryl Young. 'We are hitting a different part of the cycle. It won’t cost you if you wait it out.' A year ago, only a quarter of metro Denver ZIP codes had momentum moving in favor of buyers. Now it is approaching 90 percent, she said."
From CBC Los Angeles in California. "CBS2/KCAL9 reporter Jeff Nguyen spoke to some agents and real estate developers during this cooling off period. Jim Likens, a real estate developers, just remodeled a three-bedroom, two-bath condo in the San Fernando Valley. Likens said he’s been unable to close a deal on the property — similar properties were closing faster than you can say 'escrow' and not long ago."
"He says there was a time when homes would get snatched up the very first day they hit the market. Now? Not so much. 'This property has been on the market now for roughly two months,' Likens says."
"Realtor Jennifer Casteneda says she’s also lately been seeing more offers coming in at below the asking price. 'There’s a lot of the going back and forth with negotiating. A couple of years ago – they were coming at asking or above,' says Casteneda."
"According to Zillow, there were 24 percent more homes for sale in LA County last month than in March 2018. In Orange County, listings rose by 40 percent."
The Commercial Observer on New York. "In the first quarter, residential apartment sales slowed on the year in Manhattan in response to an uptick in new units coming to market. According to a joint first quarter report by brokerage Douglas Elliman and appraisal firm Miller Samuel, Manhattan sales were down nearly 3 percent on the year, and sales of units within new developments fell by just over 39 percent, while new inventory rose by 9 percent."
"The median sales price fell 2.2 percent on the year in the first quarter, marking the sixth consecutive year-over-year decline in quarterly median sales price and increase in inventory, according to the report."
"Meridian Capital Group‘s Ronnie Levine, opined on the state of the condo market in New York, saying lenders have become more aware of how to properly approach for-sale condos in this environment. '[We’re] watching the [for-sale] condo market in Manhattan, specifically absorption rates and what’s going on in the upper end of the market,' Levine said. 'Lenders are more cognizant,' Levine added. 'It used to be all about price per foot, and now, the first question we’re asked is how many units are above $10 million.'"
From Lehigh Valley Live in Pennsylvania. "Prices can drop in the housing market for various reasons, according to real estate agents. These run the gamut from homes being overpriced in the initial listing to buyers getting into financial binds and needing to sell faster than originally thought."
"The Lehigh Valley has a great deal of properties dropping prices weekly. We gathered a sampling of some of the most recent reductions in Northampton and Lehigh counties and listed them from high to low, according to Trulia. The steepest savings of the handful we found included a home reduced by $25,100."
From Realtor.com on New Jersey. "Melissa Gorga is a popular cast member of 'Real Housewives of New Jersey.' But her home has proven to be less appealing. Gorga and her husband have been trying to sell their custom estate in Montville Township, NJ, since 2017."
"Originally, the couple listed the mansion for $3.5 million. Last year, they dropped the price to $3.3 million, with no buyers in sight. This week, the mansion had yet another price cut—down to $2.95 million."
From Patch Moorestown in New Jersey. "We first told you about this 4-bedroom Moorestown home that sits on 21 acres of land back in January. At that time, it was on the market for $3.7 million. Well, now it's available for just under $3 million, at $2,950,000."