This is always an exciting time of year as both buyers and sellers are in preparation mode, but the accelerating pace of the market begins to foreshadow the busy spring market to come. While the last number of years were still heavily impacted by Covid market dynamics, signs are so far pointing to the fact that this will be more of a true, traditional spring market: more inventory, increased competition, price appreciation and the highest volume of sales over any other time of the year.
Buyers are ready, inventory remains low, and listings are being prepped. While it currently feels like the market is just on the edge of truly popping, this should blossom into a robust spring once the heavier inventory months of March/April/May come around. Multiple offers on well priced, desirable properties are back and the winter slowdown seems to be comfortably behind us. Is it just us, or is this pretty exciting?! We love it when the seasonality is predictable and the last few years have been anything but predictable...
A wonderful summary of all this and more from Compass Chief Economist Patrick Carlisle:
"Typically, after the long holiday slowdown, the market just begins to wake up in mid-January before accelerating into spring. That being said, inflation has dropped substantially since June and interest rates since November, home prices are well down from last spring, stock markets are up 8% (S&P) to 15% (Nasdaq) YTD as of 2/3/23 (albeit with continuing volatility), and despite escalating layoffs in high tech, early indications in 2023 point to rebounding buyer demand. Open house traffic has jumped, more buyers are requesting listing disclosure packages, and there have
been increasing reports of multiple offers and (often unexpected) overbidding of asking price. Based on this preliminary data (much of it still anecdotal*), it appears that buyer demand severely repressed by economic conditions in the end half of 2022 has begun to bounce back."
