If you like articles with lots of numbers – this article posted on Forbes will be thrilling.
The author makes a strong case for a solid season this spring. Which is good, since it’s almost April already!
One standout fact in the article was about SentriLock. SentriLock is the company behind those fancy electronic lockboxes that some Realtor’s used to struggle with non-stop.
Without giving any solid evidence via numbers, he writes this:
In fact, the number of openings of lockboxes – where a Realtor would access a key before unlocking a home – has been trending up. NAR’s SentriLlock data reading was measurably higher in January and February compared to the second half of 2018.
After a slow fall season, I was starting to get a little concerned. Some of us were wondering “where did everyone go?” But, over the last few weeks, things have certainly picked up again.
Maybe it’s the slightly nicer weather, the time change and a general overall improvement in mood. Whatever it is, it seems to be loosening things up and it’s bringing people out for an afternoon walk-through and the weekend home tours.
It’s important to track the numbers, but it also takes some moments “out in the wild” of the market to see how things are going in real life – today.
Most of those numbers quoted in the article are summaries of what has happened over the last few months. It’s important to notice when things start to turn – you need to be ready for it.
If you are waiting around for “numbers to come out” before you decide to list your latest project, you run a higher risk of missing the season.
It might be me, but it certainly “feels” like the peak of the season is getting shorter and shorter every year.
Way back when, it seemed like you had a few months for the peak of the spring selling season. You could rely on February through the middle of June for a strong set of buyers.
The last few years it seemed like the “peak” only lasted a few weeks.
Don’t get me wrong – maybe that’s a sign that things are returning to “normal”. The chaos of the peak season brings multiple offers after every open house, escalation clauses etc.
Those are great situations when you’re selling a house. It’s not so great when buying a home.
One of the things I don’t want you to miss is the meeting this month at WREIA.
At our March WREIA meeting tomorrow we will talk about unusual lead sources. Most of these sources require you to have the ability to connect with people.
Come out tomorrow, Monday, March 18th, and hear what is working (and not working) across the DC area.
What’s not working is not having the right people in place to finish a flip project in time for the spring selling season.
What is working is being ready to sell now that the peak season is right around the corner.
Join us at WREIA this month and you can learn from REAL PEOPLE having REAL SUCCESS in Real Estate.
Happy St. Paddy’s Day and see you tomorrow at WREIA!
John Peterson
Founder, Washington Real Estate Investors Association
Oh, and Wholesalers – bring your deals to share with the members!