According to the Memphis Area Association of Realtors®, there were 1,026 residential real estate sales in the MAAR MLS area in September, 2010 (full report). Year-to-date sales at the end of September were 10,865.
Contrast that to the numbers from 2005, just before the bubble burst, when September sales were 1,516, and September-ending YTD was 14,009 , 22.4% higher than 2010 YTD. You can work the numbers a lot of ways to make things brighter or more dismal, but, bottom line, not as many homes are selling these days. The Memphis market has had it better than other areas, but we still have a high foreclosure rate, and it seems that everyone who can’t get their house sold is buzzing about short sales.
- Image by joespake via Flickr
As much as we ego-driven, type-A real estate agents, who have survived this epic down market and are still doing at least some business, don’t like to admit it, times are tough. An article in the 11/28/2010 Commercial Appeal about agents supporting each other brings the point home. It’s a bit disheartening to pay the ad costs and do the preparation for an open house, only to have no one show up; or try to explain to a home seller why her competitively priced house has been on the market for 2 months without a showing; or have to tell a potential seller that they are so far underwater that they will have to look at a short sale to get out of their house, or else figure out a way to stay for a while. It seems that any conversation I have with other real estate professionals gets to, “It’s just not fun anymore.”
Where have all the buyers gone?
People still have jobs. They are getting promoted. Many of the self-employed folks I know are doing quite well. It’s only a bit harder to get a mortgage than it was 5 or 6 years ago, and no problem for someone with good credit buying a decent property. I have negotiated some incredible deals with my clients this year. There is an abundance of good, well-priced inventory. As much as we whine about some of the goings on in our city, Memphis is making progress, and it’s a good place to settle down. So, why are so few people buying houses?
The hype of “now’s a great time to buy”, the American Dream, and “all markets are local”, invest, buy, buy buy…. as the market was crashing and burning probably didn’t do too much to build consumer confidence. And now we are starting to hear rumblings of eliminating the mortgage interest tax deduction. The overall effect of the $8000 tax credit programs was to cause a slight up tick in sales. Most of my clients who benefited from the credit would have bought anyway, and the credits have only prolonged the market correction. We still haven’t had a good signal that the market has bottomed and is recovering. I believe that the buyers who are active are more savvy than ever. They know it’s a buyers’ market without being told. They expect DEALS, and are not hesitant to ask their agents to write offers that would have been laughed at and gone straight to the trashcan 5 years ago.
Time will correct the market and demand will increase, but probably not in the conventional ways that we have come to expect. The real real estate pros will weather the recession and emerge stronger. And in the meantime, those buyers who do decide to purchase will be rewarded as the market recovers. No one will be able to call the bottom until we have passed it.
I welcome your comments and ideas.
Related articles
- In difficult housing market, real-estate agents find new ways to motivate one another (commercialappeal.com)
- Thank You, Essential Workers - September 7, 2020
- Mid-Century Modern for sale – 346 Waring, Memphis, TN - July 9, 2013
- RE Buzz – Real Estate News Roundup – July 9, 2013 - July 9, 2013
What do you think? Leave your comments.