Sellers: Batten the hatches.
Buyers/Investors: Time to start salivating.
The post Tax Credit data is in for the Twin Cities, and as expected there has been a pretty large dip in home sales following one of the biggest tax incentives in the history of home buying. The biggest news occurred for traditional home Sellers (non-foreclosure/short-sale) priced between $150,000 and $350,000. Sales the week the Tax Credit ended were 1085, compared to just 384 for the week ending May 22nd. Its not quite as bad as the numbers indicate. Home sales took a MASSIVE uptick during April as the credit was about to expire. That means that many Buyers who would have bought in May and June, fast-tracked their plans to take advantage of the credit. Experts seem to agree that sales should pick up moving into the 3rd quarter.
Sellers, if you’re willing to wait there’s no need to panic. As the temporary lull in sales will likely continue through June, broader market conditions will likely carry more influence moving into the later part of 2010. For example, the number of listings down 39% from Aprils peak, meaning there is a lot less competition. The Supply-Demand ratio is still at a relatively stable 5.05 compared to its peak in 12/08 of over 12, and more recently in 12/09 at over 8.25.
