*Apologies for the lack of updates…we fortunately got pretty busy through the summer and into the early fall and balancing that between family obligations during this COVID time has been a bit of a balancing act.
*As the media has reported, the single family property market has done very well since April thanks to the perfect storm of tight inventory, record low mortgage rates, the need of families to have more space and Silicon Beach (tech industry) and many high net wealth families thriving despite the pandemic. The fervor was at its strongest in the summer and has slowed down since late October but appropriately priced homes are still garnering multiple offers or a strong buyer in the first few weeks of being on the market, especially for “entry level” homes in sought after Westside/South Bay neighborhoods. Yard/outdoor space has played a much more significant role compared to pre-Covid times.
The higher-end homes are sitting a little longer but that also has to do with inflated list prices. It was mentioned in a recent office meeting the market above $5M was experiencing some softening in specific areas.
Though buyers are being aggressive, they are not straying very far from the comparable values and we have also had more issues with conservative appraisals which have either blown up deals or caused a re-negotiation. We had a brief period of price drops during the early COVID period and the appraisers have lagged the market turn-around. Overall, escrows have obviously been closing but the majority of agents will tell you they have been far more stressful and strenuous during this Covid and intense political time.
*The condo market had a strong run into the late summer but slowed down as we came into the election cycle. Things have picked up, but not nearly the fervor of the single family market. We are seeing condo owners willing to move to the valley or even further out to have a single family home over the ease and accessibility of being more centrally located.
*Single family home supply in Los Angeles is down 1.3 months compared to last year when supply was already tight. People are not moving during the pandemic unless they have to.
*Nationally, we have seen a 49% increase in people looking for single family homes online over last year.
*The well thought of Jon Burns Real Estate economic outlook for 2021 anticipates further appreciation in home prices to the tune of 3-5%. Bank of America is predicting similar appreciation. Main reason given are the fed maintaining the current interest rate policy for three years and expecting a strong economic jolt with Q1 Stimulus money up to $1T to be distributed along with job creation expanding as the economy normalizes into Q3 and Q4 after mass vaccination.
