The Spring Selling Season May Be “NOW”!

If selling your home is in the plans for 2017, it may be in your best interest to start now. Normally, sellers tend to wait until spring to put their home on the market when it is believed that most buyers start looking for a home to purchase. With the current low inventory of homes available for sale, this housing market is anything but normal. It may be to your advantage to list your home right now. There are many unpredictable factors which can affect the real estate market whether it is interest rates, the general economic climate…even the weather. The one factor that is affecting it right now is inventory. Supply and demand is what drives the price of homes. With a good supply of homes for sale and steady demand, prices stabilize. When the supply is low and demand is high, as is the circumstance we face today, prices tend to rise. If you list your home now, chances are that there will be much less competition with similar homes for sale in the area than there will be in a couple of months. This also may mean getting top dollar for your home. Of course, as always condition and location will directly affect what the home eventually sells for.  Another factor in your favor is that more Americans are showing optimism toward their personal finances and the housing market, a reversal to a five-month decline. The National Association of REALTORS® web site reported that according to Fannie Mae’s Home Purchase Sentiment Index, a survey of 1,000 Americans in January about their attitudes toward housing, Americans are more upbeat about home prices, home selling, their rising household incomes and they are less scared about losing their jobs.

When considering the sale of your home, members of the Three Rivers Association of REALTORS® are here to help. Meet with your agent TODAY to discuss listing your home for sale. You can also find a REALTOR® by visiting the Three Rivers Association of Realtors web site…www.trarealtors.net.

2016 ILLINOIS HOUSING MARKET ENDS ON HIGH NOTE

Will and Grundy Counties report strong sales

According to statistics compiled by the Illinois REALTORS®, both home sales and median prices in the state of Illinois finished 2016 on an upward trend during a year marked by tight housing inventories and continued strong consumer demand. Statewide home sales totaled 162,380 up 3.9 percent from 156,239 reported in 2015. The year-end median price reached $184,000 compared to $173,000 the previous year. The median is a typical market price where half the homes sold for more and half sold for less. The average time it took to sell a home in Illinois in 2016 was 63 days down from 70 days in 2015. 

Will County recorded 10,631 closed sales last year which is up slightly over 10,583 sales in 2015. The median sales price in Will County went from $183,000 in 2015 to $199,654 last year which is an increase of 9.1 percent. Grundy County had 689 closed sales in 2016 versus 636 sales the previous year which is an 8.3 percent increase. The median sales price in Grundy County was $163,000 compared to $162,700 in 2015. Three Rivers Association of REALTORS® President Matt Persicketti said, “our members have been encouraged with the increase in market prices and decrease in market time. When a good house that is priced right goes on the market, it generally sells quickly. There is definitely a need for more houses to fill the demand.”

The National Association of Realtors reported that existing home sales closed out 2016 as the best year in a decade. Addressing the Illinois REALTORS® at their Public Policy meetings last week in East Peoria, the chief economist at realtor.com, Jonathan Smoke, said that low housing inventory is likely to have a significant impact on the 2017 housing market. In Illinois, year-end inventory dropped to 50,213 down 15.7 percent from 2015 and at the lowest level since 2008. Smoke said that there has been an uptick in new home construction which will add to the potential supply. He added other factors which should contribute to a healthy housing market include mortgage rates are still considered historically attractive and affordable, consumer confidence is at a 15-year high and credit access is improving.

The Three Rivers Association of REALTORS® represents over 900 members primarily in Will and Grundy Counties dedicated to professional and ethical service for their real estate clients.