Selling a home in the spring in Solano County
Spring has always been the highly anticipated season of welcome weather, marking the end of winter’s cold, uncomfortable offerings. Spring has also been one of the best times of the year to sell a home.
Traditionally, home prices rise as the weather warms up and the seasonal, cold rains subside. According to real estate reporter Alison Rogers, home prices rose 5.5% in the 12-month period ending November, and although mixed predictions for spring sales are being debated in the national forum, northern California is set to have an especially strong showing as demand highly outweighs supply. In its daily morning news commentary, KGO radio anchors noted the Bay Area is one of the hottest real estate markets in the state with a seller seeing multiple offers on a listing.
Various indicators, notably the Case-Shiller index, are suggesting that many consumers are leaping into the market, some wanting to own, with others looking to purchase an investment property. The real estate website Trulia reported that average home values jumped 25 percentage points over the past year as delinquencies and foreclosures continued to wane. Perhaps most noteworthy, the National Association of Realtors reported that the December 2014 pending home-sales index, a measure of contracts signed, was at 101.7 up from 95.1 a year ago.
Clearly, what aids the market is ultimately the weather. Temperate weather, which Solano County has seen a marked abundance of – and is known to cause predictable spikes in home sale activity – could bring buyers out in droves. Indeed, the data and analysis point to a strong sellers market, highlighted by the expected lack of inventory as homes owners waiting for prices to rise higher begin to enter the market.
Nationally, the National Association of Realtors reports that only 2.3 million homes are available for sale, a less-than-six-months’ supply. In certain localities, especially in the most affordable parts of the Bay Area, the lack of inventory is especially evident. In Solano County, real estate listings may be temporarily up, with the caveat that sellers most often become upward buyers. All leading to the reality of a robust seller’s market.