Signs of spring
Tuesday, on my way out of the driveway I spotted the first crocus popping up through the mulch in my yard. Spring! I should have known spring was just around the corner as the days have gotten noticeably warmer this week, the sun is staying up later, and there are more houses on the market.
Are there more houses on the market?
Well, yes. In raw numbers, the number of new listings in the towns I serve* went up from 175 from February 20 to February 28 to 274 from March 1 to March 9 (when I wrote this.) Does this mean anything to buyers? Maybe.
For my buyers, it is 50:50 as to whether or not they have more to see. Some had lots more to see, some had nothing new. My busiest buyers this week were looking for mid-sized properties. They saw an increase in single-family 3 and 4 bedroom choices. Those looking for ready-to-go condos were still pretty idle last weekend.
One good thing about more choices is that I ran into fewer swarms. There were some buyers at every open house, but I only ran into one true swarm, plus some with moderate traffic. Part of this was because more houses for sale spreads out the buyers between more houses. Part could be due to an increase in Saturday open houses; that spreads out the showing time. Regardless, I am happy to see decrease in the “pass the chips” effect. It just makes people tense.
Readers who are out house hunting, am I being too optimistic about the increase I see? Are you seeing more properties in your search criteria? Are you encouraged? Do you think that waiting will help you avoid the premium cost Sam wrote about on Monday? Or are you just too fed up and ready to do anything to get back to spending Sundays having fun instead of going to open houses?
Sellers, when do you plan to start marketing your house? What’s keeping you in hibernation? It is 5 weeks after Groundhog’s Day. What are you waiting for?
* My area, since someone always asks, is Acton, MA; Arlington, MA; Bedford, MA; Belmont, MA; Brookline, MA; Cambridge, MA; Concord, MA; Lexington, MA; Medford, MA; Natick, MA; Needham, MA; Newton, MA; Somerville, MA; Sudbury, MA; Waltham, MA; Watertown, MA; Wayland, MA; Wellesley, MA; Winchester, MA
