6 minute read
What’s Ahead for the Housing Market
— ASK AN AGENT —
and How to Make It Work for You
The infinity pool at this Palm Beach home, landscaped by Keith Williams, is designed to blend visually with the Intracoastal Waterway.
Bewildered by the mixed signals in recent real estate news? Douglas Elliman experts offer some clarity.
ISING INTEREST rates and talk of “inflection points” can be confusing, whether you’re buying or selling real estate. To help you navigate whichever side of the real estate transaction you’re by Bernadette StarzeeR considering now, we’ve collected expert insights and strategies for success from seasoned Douglas Elliman agents across the country. For nearly two years, the housing market has been marked by frenzied activity, with low inventory, escalating prices, and bidding wars. “It was like no market I had ever seen,” says Michelle Oliver, founding member and estates director of Douglas Elliman’s Beverly Hills office. “Many buyers made hasty decisions and then backed out of deals because they hadn’t been able to do their due diligence.” Headlines reported a cooling in spring 2022, but the market was simply returning to normal, according to experts. “Everything feels slow when you come down from 250 mph,” says David Siddons, a realtor associate in Douglas Elliman’s Florida market. The shift shouldn’t alarm or surprise anyone, says Avi Dan-Goor, a sales executive and realtor for Douglas Elliman in Las Vegas. “Real estate is cyclical. We’re going to go through a cycle about every five years,” he says. “The Las Vegas market has been growing for six
or seven years, so we are overdue for some sort of cycle.”
Last year, if you made an offer below list price, “you were looked at as wasting everyone’s time,” Dan-Goor adds. “That has changed. Buyers aren’t making offers unless they perceive they are getting a deal.”
One of the most common questions potential home buyers ask now is how rising interest rates, inflation, and a possible recession may impact prices, says Kathy Murray, a licensed associate real estate broker with Douglas Elliman in Manhattan. While inventory has risen year-over-year, in some market segments it is still quite low. For instance, in Manhattan there’s particularly limited supply and great demand for downtown neighborhoods like Tribeca and the West Village and prewar apartments on the Upper West Side, Murray says. In Miami, inventory in the $1 million to $3 million range remains tight. “That segment is still a seller’s market and will remain so for quite some time unless something changes,” Siddons says. Luxury properties in markets like New York and Miami are also continuing to move, and demand for new property remains keen, a trend that will likely persist as development slows amid supply chain challenges and increased building costs.
A firepit invites homeowners and their guests at this Aspen property to enjoy the patio year-round.
—Stacey Kelly, broker associate, Douglas Elliman, Colorado
Buyers:
FOCUS ON THE BIGGER PICTURE
Markets have always fluctuated. “What doesn’t change is what you want,” says Stacey Kelly, a broker associate for Douglas Elliman in Colorado who focuses primarily on Aspen and Snowmass. In both locales, “buying is 70 percent heart and 30 percent business,” she says. “It’s not just ‘if I put X dollars in, how many dollars will I get out?’ The return on investment is not just financial. You have to look at the return on investment for your life and memories.”
Dan-Goor offers similar advice, counseling buyers to follow their instincts if and when they find a property they fall in love with.
Looking east to New York, there’s good news for
MARCO BOTTIGELLI/MOMENT/GETTY Bright fall foliage covers New York’s Central Park.
—Avi Dan-Goor, sales executive and realtor, Douglas Elliman, Las Vegas
Copperhaus in Las Vegas was designed by assemblageSTUDIO to blend with the desert landscape and Red Rock Mountains. buyers: Sellers are beginning to price properties more correctly, Murray says. “It’s a good time for buyers, even though interest rates are higher. Buyers can always refinance when interest rates come back down, which everyone seems to think will happen. There are good opportunities in the $1 million market, and up to $2 million, with little competition from other buyers.”
If you find a property that feels right, go for it, Oliver says, “but never skimp on due diligence.”
Sellers:
PRICE RIGHT & FIND A GOOD AGENT
While it’s easy to worry about a possible shift toward a buyer’s market, Dan-Goor has reassuring words for home sellers: “Don’t panic. If properties are priced well, they’re going to sell in any market,” he says.
Keep your asking price conservative rather than aspirational, Oliver advises. “We still have enough buyers to get a great sale, but you’ll gain more interest if your home is priced correctly.”
It’s also smart to be aware of inventory coming onto the market and how it may impact your property’s desirability and the likelihood of getting your asking price, Siddons tells sellers. With rising inventory, buyers have more choices than they did a year ago, he notes. Still, good real estate agents sell properties in up, down, and so-so markets—and that makes aligning yourself with a seasoned agent who has expertise in your market and your type of property more important than ever.
“Look at the agent’s longevity, results, and customer
ROGER DAVIES/KOVAC DESIGN STUDIO/ OTTO service,” Dan-Goor suggests. And once you’ve found a good agent, listen to their advice. “Our job is to keep our finger on the market’s pulse,” he says. “We live and breathe real estate and pay attention to how the big picture impacts pricing. Our [Las Vegas] market historically has changed very quickly; buyer behavior might not be the same in three weeks.”
If sellers want to make a quality-of-life move, “don’t wait,” Murray says. And for those looking to upsize, it’s a great time. “You may not get exactly what you want on your sale, but you will get a better value on your purchase.”
A Beverly Hills home by Kovac Design Studio draws the eye to the stunning views of Los Angeles.
