Selling and Buying tips in the Current Atlanta Market

     March 2020 was the start of a new market in Real Estate. As most businesses were closing down due to COVID-19 and the economy was going to a standstill, mortgage rates dropped to some of the lowest rates in history. This encouraged many to buy homes but not as many were interested in selling. This is what we call a Seller's Market when there are more Buyers than Sellers and there is a shortage in inventory. For Sellers, this can be classified as a great thing! Seller’s get top dollar for their homes and this often helps the property values to increase in the surrounding areas. For Buyers, however, this can make looking for a home a bit of a challenge. 

    One thing to keep in mind when Selling during a Seller's Market period is that oftentimes Buyers are going to be competing for your home.   This means that they will possibly be offering over the asking price, will not ask for any Seller's concessions, and will do other things to make their offers stand out from the rest. While this sounds great in hindsight, keep in mind that if the Buyer is financing a loan, they will most likely require an appraisal to be done. Sometimes even all-cash offers ask that the home appraise, though a lot of investors may not. Keep this in mind when deciding on the price of the home. You want to make the sales price attractive but not too high in the event that offers come above the asking price you can be more confident that you won't have a problem when the appraisal is done. 

    To all the Buyers out there.... in a Seller's Market, it is wise to keep in mind that you may be competing with multiple offers on a home. What does this mean? It means that you should prepare yourself to make your best offer upfront. Listen to the professionals, take their advice. They know the market and they can give you a picture of how other Buyers are often offering. Believe it or not, most will come with very similar offers so you want to make sure yours stands out from the rest if you want to have a chance at winning a bid. Also, be patient! When in a Seller's Market, it's not always easy going under contract. Unless you have a win-win strategy for both yourself and the Seller and/or can compete with other more aggressive Buyers, you may be in the market for a while.

    In the Metro Atlanta area, the market has been hot since the start of the pandemic. Home sales have not slowed down, home prices have increased, and there is no sign of a slowdown anytime soon. Buyers are oftentimes placing bids on homes with $20k or more above the asking price, not asking for any closing costs or repairs and willing to buy homes in AS IS condition, and in some instances don't ask for a due diligence period and/or are willing to pay the difference in the appraisal value and the shortage of a contract that goes over the appraised value. Buyers have become major risk-takers, so to compete with that you have to be willing to become a risk-taker yourself. Plan ahead, save up your money, and come up with a strategy. And as always, it is encouraged to use a professional to assist you in your search.