The Spring Market in Briar Chapel
Happy May! This spring, the real estate market has been…well…it’s been a thing. Lack of available inventory has put a dramatic squeeze and we can see it here in Briar Chapel. Let’s break down some numbers and explain some of the insanity…
I’ll talk about March and April as one megamonth because, aside from the inventory imbalance they tell the same story. Normally when we have a large increase in average sales price it’s because last year smaller homes sold versus large homes this year and it just throws the numbers off. Not so much this year, which is why I included the average price per square foot. That’s an increase of about $30/sqft over last April. So if you have a 3,000 square foot home that’s an additional $90,000.
Of the 28 homes that closed last month, only 5 sold for less than list price and 3 right at list price. The other 20 sold for more than list and that bump the average sales price to be 9k over the average list. We haven’t seen that before in BC.
This entire year has been like this. 5 median days on market? At this point last year 19 homes had gone under contract in a week or less. This year 35. And there could likely be more sold homes that never made it to the MLS but I can’t verify those numbers.
How long will this last? It’s hard to say. We went from 0.2 months of resale inventory in March for Briar Chapel to 0.9 months in April. A technical improvement but just a drop in the bucket (remember, you want to be closer to 6 if you’re a buyer). We will need several
months of sustained higher-than-normal inventory to get rid of a year-long buyer backlog and there’s little sign that’s on the horizon. Maybe the end of the year. Maybe next year? Real estate agents can price a home for today’s market but we sadly don’t have crystal balls.
What about new construction? Well, they’re no longer able to soak up all that excess demand). Last year through May 1 they had closed on 21 contracts written in 2020. This year that’s down to 15. Therefore, it’s with a heavy heart that we retire the new construction updates.
And while that might look like amazing news for sellers, keep in mind you’ll need to buy a home on the other end of this so you’ll be dealing with multiple offers, all cash, crazy due diligence fees or even waived appraisals on the other side.
Don’t cash that check yet!