Fast-paced Dallas housing market frustrating both buyers and agents | Dallasnews.com – News for Dallas, Texas – The Dallas Morning News.
I have been talking about the state of the market for a few months now. We are in midst of an incredibly hot, very active market in which a large percentage of listings are receiving multiple, multiple, MULTIPLE offers within days of going on the market. Everyone that has been waiting on the sidelines for the past few years, for whatever reason, have all seemed to agree with each other that NOW is the time to buy.
In a “normal” market there should be 6 month’s worth of available inventory — we are down to just two months of available inventory. This is a perfect example of supply and demand…the fact that interest rates, as well as prices, are starting to creep up has caused all those folks who have been waiting for the “right time” to buy, to collectively say, “IT’S TIME TO BUY EVERYBODY!! LAST ONE THERE’S THE ROTTEN EGG!!”
So all the people that had been waiting to get out there and buy, have been getting out there to take advantage of rates before they go up too much. So a lot of our supply has been dwindling away to all of the local first-time buyers. Along with all the first-time buyer’s, we have another large demographic, the baby boomers. All the baby boomers are starting to see their kids move out for college, or moving into their first homes, turning a majority of the baby boomer generation into “empty nesters”. So from a local standpoint only, we have younger adults and families purchasing their first homes, and then their parents are stuck in homes that are just way to big for one or two people. So many of these empty nesters are doing what makes sense to them, and that is to usually down size to a smaller home.
And finally, added to all the local demand that is here to start with, the DFW area is home to many large corporations, and their headquarters are based in the Metroplex. We see these big companies starting to relocate people from around the county, and bringing them to Texas. And it’s not just the giant corporations bringing jobs to the area. There are entire businesses that have begun leaving their home states just to take advantage of our location. DFW is the central hub for all business throughout the entire USA. Especially with the international airport being dead center within the metroplex, it is just so much easier for traveling businessmen to live in the area and fly out from DFW to wherever they need to be, you can get to both LA and NY in just a few hours, tops. We also attract even more people and businesses to the state because we do not have a state income tax, and who likes paying any tax? NOBODY.
When you take everything into consideration, from the first-time buyers to those who are looking to downsize. People that have been relocated through a large corporation or someone moving their own smaller business to the area for tax reasons. Plus all the other people that you have moving to the area, seeking out a great opportunity combined with lower taxes, and a lower cost of living. With all this considered it becomes incredibly clear as to why we only have two months of inventory. And it all comes back to the basic economics of supply versus demand. We have a HUGE demand for a tiny amount of inventory (It’s been 10 years since I took macro or micro economics, but I can see the graph in my mind..) and the graph in my brain shows that prices are on the rise, which they are.
If you were thinking about buying, don’t take this as a negative and decide you don’t want to pay a higher price for something, because prices have not gone up too high as of yet, and interest rates (especially when compared historically) are still pretty low. All this information is very useful because it shows you things are getting better, and that means things will start to increase in price.
But if you have been thinking about it, and you would like to try to buy something before prices go up a lot, I would jump into high-gear search mode, look through all the homes that make up the two month supply of inventory, and move quick on a home that you can see yourself living in for the next 5-7 years. And if you do get overwhelmed, confused or lost, or want help trying to find something that fits your needs that may not be listed yet, call up a Realtor and let them know you need a buyer’s agent that can assist you with finding “something of XX size, X/X bed/bath , with a pool and a yard, in Keller for no more than $500,000”
Looking for a home can get overwhelming, and exhausting, and if you don’t know what you are doing or you are not sure exactly where you want to be and what you want in a home, CALL ME OR EMAIL ME. My service will cost you nothing, and I will make sure to find a home that fits your lifestyle and will then negotiate on your behalf to make sure you get the home for a fair price and all the terms of the contract are in your favor.
It can be daunting to do this on your own. Call me and you will have a great time throughout the entire home purchase process. Please call my cell 817 808 3159 or email me at ssandlin24@gmail.com if you have ANY questions, or if you would like some assistance with any real estate related issue. Take Care Everyone, and until next time, you stay classy DFW…..
Stephen Sandlin
the stephen sandlin real estate blog 