Local homebuyers complaining about the slim pickings amid one of the harshest winters in memory may finally have some more choices in Chicago, where the number of homes for sale has risen this month.
In all, 9,969 homes in the six-county metropolitan area were newly listed for sale in the first two weeks of March, up 6.1 percent over the same period in 2013, according to Midwest Real Estate Data LLC.
"It's really been non-stop the past few weeks," said Karen Ranquist, an agent in the Lincoln Park office of Koenig & Strey Real Living. "I'm up late dealing with people who want to get listed."
After more than a year of being told a lack of inventory is holding back the local housing market, homeowners "are finally really hearing it and doing something, Ms. Ranquist said.
It's another step in the local market's gradual recovery, said Rich Kasper, a broker at Conlon: A Real Estate Company.
"Last year looked good, this year looks better," he said. "More people can see the activity in the market now, so they're coming into it."
CASE-SHILLER INCREASE
The S&P/Case-Shiller index of single-family home prices in the Chicago area rose 11 percent last year, the biggest annual jump in 25 years. That increase has helped bring someunderwater homeowners, who owe more than their property is worth, closer to or above breaking even. If they weren't underwater, the price increases make it more likely they can cover the cost of a move from their sale proceeds.
Rising prices also make homeowners eager to buy to their next house before more increases more, Mr. Kasper said.
One other factor pulling sellers onto the market is the season, said Marty Winefield, an agent in the Lakeview office of Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage.
"It's spring and you sell your house," he said. "If people are listing their homes in larger numbers, that's a sign of normalcy returning."
Buyer eagerness also may be pulling homes onto the market. Many sellers who didn't wait for the cold to break did well, which makes sellers who waited for spring even more eager to capitalize on demand, Mr. Kasper said. He had clients who wanted to postpone listing their two-bedroom Lakeview condo until the weather warmed up, but he urged them to "get in ahead of the market." The property sold in less than three weeks.
"If they can sell it in that cold, you can get it sold in the spring," Mr. Kasper said.
Of course, the uptick in listings in recent weeks was not entirely unexpected: February through April typically are busy listing months, and many people who planned to list their homes for the start of this year's spring selling season postponed their plans in February because of the bitter cold. But February's crop of 16,983 new listings was down less than one percent, or about even with the 17,152 for February 2013, indicating the weather didn't send sellers into a deep freeze.
WAITING ON PRICING
Because pricing a home depends so much on the prices of comparable properties, Ms. Ranquist said she has been counseling most new listers to hold off on one key detail until the last minute: price.
"I have four new listings coming on," she said, "and I've told all of them we don't want to pick our price until right before we list, because every day there's something coming on the market that (contributes) to our price point."
Mr. Kasper and Ms. Ranquist both said the March increase may presage an even larger influx of new inventory in coming weeks.
"You can see it in how busy the stagers and photographers are," Ms. Ranquist said, referring to some of the vendors needed in the pre-listing weeks. "They don't have any time to see your listing right now."
For his part, Mr. Kasper said he not only sees an increase coming but is banking on it.
"I've got a pocketful of buyers who are ready," he said.
Comments
Post a Comment