How to Navigate a Hot Real Estate Market
How to Navigate a Hot Real Estate Market
Hey all, it’s been awhile! We thought we’d pop in and give a Bakersfield real estate market update, and give a little glimpse into what we’ve been up to. As you know, this past year the real estate market has been absolutely wild and it doesn’t look like there’s going to be a change any time soon.
Table of Contents (click to jump to the section of choice).
Glentzer Group Update
We’ve been hard at work guiding our clients in buying and selling homes in this unprecedented market, and at the same time we’ve embarked on the process of remodeling our own home! Back in the early 2000s we built a Balfanz home in the Brimhall neighborhood. For many wonderful years we raised our family in this home, found connection in our community, our daughter attended Liberty High School and we put down roots.
After our daughter left home, we decided it was time to move to Downtown Bakersfield and rent out our house. We have loved our time living downtown these past few years, and have enjoyed all of the local restaurants and businesses. We began feeling the draw to move back into our family home where we have a bit more room to roam, so we used this opportunity to remodel it before moving back in.
It’s nice to know that even though we’ll be moving across town, we’ll still have many of our favorite spots close by as many local businesses’ have opened second locations such as Cafe Smitten, Jin Sushi and Fit Pantry.
Home Remodel
We’ve heard from a lot of you that you’re also remodeling. Between quarantining and working remotely this past year, the pandemic gave many of us an opportunity to focus on updating our homes. It’s been a fun experience for us, though we have noticed some delays in ordering appliances and parts due to backorders. For example, the new fridge we bought is three months out, whereas the new dishwasher and range were right on time.
It’s still a strange time we live in, as we all continue to recover from the effects of 2020 and begin to venture back into the world. During our own remodel process and those of our clients, we’ve also noticed that due to the pandemic the workforce has been down and it’s been difficult for businesses to find labor. However, this is beginning to pick back up as everything begins to open up again.
This is something to keep in mind when preparing your home to sell. It’s better to tend to any repairs your home might need ahead of time, rather than waiting until it’s found by an appraiser during an inspection. Even as the workforce begins to recover, it’s still taking a bit longer than usual to order parts and have repairs made, and if you’ve had a hard time finding help to get work done, this is why.
If you’re not sure what needs to be updated before you list your home to sell, give us a call and have us over to take a look before you spend more than you need to on repairs. You can also click here to check out our blog post on preparing your Bakersfield home to sell.
Bakersfield Real Estate Market Update
The real estate market is still very stable in the sense that interest rates continue to stay low and competition between buyers is high. Based on all of the research and experts we keep up to date with, there isn’t a market decline in sight. We can expect the market to continue as it has for awhile longer, which means that if you’re waiting to buy or sell a home there’s no better time than the present!
Home Appraisals
There has recently been a delay in completing home appraisals due to so many people in escrow or in the middle of a home refinance and appraisers are backed up. When it comes to the real estate market, patience is key.
Selling Your Home
Home inventory continues to stay low and competition between buyers is high, which means that sellers continue to receive multiple offers! We recently represented a seller that received 24 offers within 48 hours of being listed, with many of the offers well over the asking price.
When listing your home to sell in this market, it’s important to keep in mind that you can list the property for any price you like, however, the appraiser will always come in at market value. Even if the buyer delivers an attractive offer that is exceedingly over the listing price, it does not mean that you’ll receive this amount. The buyer can only acquire a loan on the appraised market value of the home. However, in this market, many buyers are willing to pay above appraised value in order to be competitive.
We’ve also been working with sellers that would like to sell their home, but find themselves in between a rock and a hard place because if they sold, then they would have no where to stay in the mean time while looking for a new home to purchase. It’s very difficult to submit a contingent offer in this market, and it’s best to have resources freed up and ready for immediate use.
If this is the situation you find yourself in, we have a few suggestions that might help.
List your home to sell in order to have cash on hand and stay with friends or family in the mean time while you look for your new home.
Sell your home and rent in the mean time. Rental properties are also a bit competitive at the moment, however we can absolutely provide you with resources to lighten your load. Watson property management manages hundreds of rental properties. We can guide you in connecting with the right people.
A creative option would be to shop for your new home with a hard money loan. Once your new dream home has closed, you would list your current home for sale. In this market, it would sell quickly in about one to two months, making your hard money loan an extremely short term loan. Then you could refinance it with a conventional home loan with a lower interest rate.
Are you a pre-approved buyer or a seller that’s ready to list your home? Drop your contact information below and we’ll give you a call or email.
Buying a Home
We don’t need to tell you that the market is competitive for buyers at the moment. However, what we will tell you is how to prepare yourself and finances in order to be one of the first to deliver a strong offer when you find a home you love.
Get pre-approved for a home loan before you shop. Click here to learn more about getting pre-approved.
Be prepared to pay for the down payment and you’ll most likely need to cover your own closing costs. Verify with your lender that you have the funds to cover both.
You’ll need funds to pay for the home appraisal and inspection, which will total about $1,000 give or take.
Structuring an offer in this market looks very different than it did just a few years ago. In many cases, homes are going above asking price, however that is not always the case. We’ve also recently worked with buyers that did not need to offer above market value. It’s more important than ever to work with a full time, seasoned Realtor that knows the ins and outs of the market and is available to view a home right when it’s listed.
When crafting a strong offer, we first start by calling the listing agent and gathering information. We want to know how many offers have been submitted, when the seller is making a decision, and any other specifics that are needed to put our best foot forward.
Once your offer is accepted and escrow begins, there are many moving parts and everyone does their best to close on time, but sometimes life happens. Patience, and a trustworthy Realtor that has your back, is key.