What Will the Spring Market in Central Mass Look Like in 2019?
The Spring Housing Market
The housing prices have continued to rise at a very steady pace over the last few years, and this seems to be the case for this spring market. The days on the market have also been pretty short in Massachusetts compared to other parts of the country.
Our inventory has seen a drawback, and this is especially true for affordably priced homes. People are reluctant to put their homes on the market for fear they will find a buyer and be unable to find the right home to move into as their next step. So they view homes they would like, but these homes will go under agreement before they can market and sell their own house.
National Association of Realtors (NAR) has a national Housing Snapshot demonstrating the drop in sales and the tight market driven by the lack of inventory as of the end of the year in 2018.
NAR December 2018 Existing Home Sales
Our local Worcester Report showed a similar result for the Q4 end of the year report. The number of homes for sale in Q4 2018 was down 12.6 % and the number of homes sold was down 7.2%.
But NAR is reporting blockbuster February results with the largest gain since December of 2015. Continued faith in reasonable interest rates and slightly increased inventory mean the spring of 2019 should be a great opportunity to buy a home.
Buyers should be well prepared if they hope to be able to purchase a home this spring. Having an up-to-date pre-approval (not a pre-qualification) will be very necessary. Spend some time with your trusted lender and fill out all the paperwork, so you have every confidence you will be able to place a strong offer and be a great buyer this spring.
