Coronavirus and Real Estate

The last couple weeks with the economy have been pretty crazy. Just to give you an idea if you’re reading this in the future, the stock market is down around 35% in the last two weeks, most schools are closed, the majority of people are working from home, and there is talk about locking down the economy for an indefinite period of time, all stemming from the Coronavirus COVID-19. 

The reason for this message today is that a lot of people were asking me, “What’s going on in the real estate market? What effect is the pandemic having on real estate?” I talk to friends and fellow realtors all over the country and it’s surprisingly good from pretty much everyone I’ve talked to, except for in Utah for whatever reason. It’s pretty much business as usual, but that could stop at any time. 

Just to give you an idea, last week we put a couple of properties on the market. We had about 25 showings and multiple offers. Another agent in Louisville I talked to yesterday said the same thing. This week we put two properties on the market on Wednesday and in less than 12 hours each one has 4-5 showings so far. So as of right now the real estate market is good. 

What’s driving the real estate market? 

• We have extremely low interest rates - in the low threes

• We have more millenials and first-time homebuyers in the housing market now than since 1993. It’s almost a 30-year high for young people buying their first home.

•  A lot of people are working from home, the kids are off of school, their spouse is also working from home...houses are feeling a little bit tiny. I think a lot of those people are going to be thinking about moving up or upgrading to a larger home and take advantage of the low rates. They’re home and it’s easy to shop online. If anybody is in the market for a home, with some of the amazing technology we have to do virtual tours, it’s an incredible alternative to in-person showings. 

That’s what’s going on now. I’ll keep you informed as things change. So far, the real estate market is good and I’m happy to help if you have any questions, you want to talk about something, need supplies or food - I’m happy to help out however I can. We’re still working and here to help! Call us at 303-442-5001.