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COVID-19 Resources

for Home Buyers and Sellers

 

The Columbus Housing Market is Booming

The COVID-19 outbreak has been extremely challenging for all, and we hope you and your families are staying safe and healthy. The real estate market is booming despite of the ongoing pandemic. Home values have been rising throughout the year, and buyers are out in force competing for a very limited inventory of listings.

At RE/MAX 24/7 we are 100% available to assist you sell your most valuable asset or find the home of your dreams.

We have implemented procedures to keep you safe. We offer client consultations by video conference, and conduct both virtual and live showings. We practice social distancing and wear face coverings where required.

As the economy recovers from COVID-19, we wanted to highlight how we keep you safe during the home buying and selling process, and give you the resources you need to make smart decisions in this competitive market.

This has been a spectacular recovery for contract signings and goes to show the resiliency of American consumers and their evergreen desire for homeownership…This bounce back also speaks to how the housing sector could lead the way for a broader economic recovery.

Lawrence Yun

Chief Economist, National Association of Realtors

Weekly Market Update

The housing market is experiencing a tremendous recovery following the lock downs. There is very strong buyer demand. Live showing requests have surpassed 2019 since early June 2020.  Multiple purchase offers are common on most listings resulting in bidding wars and offers above list price.

The inventory of active listings has dropped to 2,607, a historic low for this time of the year.

Here’s how the Columbus housing market has changed in the past 7 days as compared to the same period a year ago.

Updated: September 19, 2020

%

New Listings

%

Showing Requests

%

Pending Contracts

%

Closed Sales

New Listings

Homes listed in Central Ohio during the 7-day period before the date shown on the bottom. The orange bars show 2020 data, the blue bars 2019. The red line represents the % change in new listings. New listings have been substantially lower than a year ago, resulting in an extreme inventory shortage.

Pending Contracts

Pending contracts during the 7-day period before the date at the bottom of the chart. The orange bars show 2020 data, the blue bars 2019.  Pending contracts have surpassed last year’s numbers since the end of June. They reflect the significantly higher buyer demand we experience this summer.

Closed Sales

Home Sales closed in Central Ohio during the 7-day period before the date at the bottom of the chart. The orange bars show 2020 data, the blue bars 2019. Closings show a strong recovery after businesses started to re-open during the summer. The drop in closings in the week before September 11 is likely due to the start of school and strong end of August sales. 

Showing Requests

This chart shows live showings requested by buyers on listings in the Columbus MLS. The orange line shows 2020, blue is 2019. Following the initial shock of the Covid-19 pandemic, house hunters are back in full force. Live showing requests have exceeded 2019 over the summer by 20% in average.

How We Keep Buyers Safe

  • We offer virtual consultations via Zoom video conference or over the phone.
  • Before we schedule live showings we will review photos and virtual tours of listings.
  • I don’t recommend you attend open houses.
  • We won’t schedule overlapping showings.
  • We will drive in separate cars to showings. I will bring hand sanitizer and gloves. I will also advise you of special showing rules for each specific listing.
  • All contracts and offers will be submitted online with digital signatures.
  • Home inspectors may only allow 1 extra person to attend the inspection.
  • We will practice social distancing at closing, and not schedule round table closings where buyers and sellers sit around the same table. 

How We Protect Your House When You List

  • We will hire a professional photographers.
  • I will also create a 3D virtual model of your home.
  • We will not conduct open houses.
  • We won’t schedule overlapping showings.
  • We will ask potential buyers to wear gloves during the showing and minimize touching of door handles and light switches.
  • All listing documents and contracts will be submitted online with digital signatures.
  • We will practice social distancing at closing, and not schedule round table closings where buyers and sellers sit around the same table.

Find out what your home would sell for in today’s market:

Click for FREE Home Value

Answers to Your Questions

Should I list my home now or wait?

We strongly recommend you list now or at least get your house ready to list. The inventory is much lower than during the regular spring selling season, and buyers are looking.

Don’t miss the short summer boom.

We expect demand to drop this full, as we realize the full impact of unemployment.

Is now a good time to buy a home?

If your job has not been impacted by the government shutdown you should certainly buy a home right now.

The inventory is at historic lows. You will face competition from other buyers, but we can show you how to win in this competitive market.

Your affordability is much higher this year due to interest rates as low as 3%.

 

When will the real estate market recover?

The real estate market is very hot, despite of Covid-19 and the general economic slow-down.

Unfortunately, fewer home owners are ready to sell, so the inventory is even lower than during the normal spring sales cycle. 

At the beginning of 2020 we had a significant housing shortage. Most people who’ve been housr hunting when the coronavirus pandemic started still need a place to live.

Are we going into a recession?

The economy has entered a recession in the second quarter. Most experts agree it will recover quickly later this year.

The housing market will be less effected by the recession than other sectors of the economy. Most likely real estate will become a strong force leading the economy out of the recession.

Most importantly, the recession is NOT caused by housing. There’s still a housing shortage and interest rates are extremely low.

Is this going to be like 2008?

No, this recession is quite different than 2008.

It was caused by the coronavirus pandemic and not by an oversupply of housing and subprime mortgages.

Unlike 2008, the housing market of 2020 is extremely strong, foreclosure rates are at historic lows, we do NOT have an oversupply of houses, and most home owners are not overleveraged.

It is unlikely that home values will suffer during the pandemic. As a matter of fact, home values were 3.4% higher in April 2020 (when Covid-19 hit us hard) than a year ago.

 

Resources to Help You Through the Crisis

Help for Homeowners

Find out what to do if you can’t pay your mortgage due to COVID-19.

Help for Small Business

Get access to government funds to help you during the crisis.

Ohio COVID-19 Response

Governor DeWine’s daily briefings and Ohio stay-at-home regulations.

Johns Hopkins COVID-19 Map

Map showing daily updates of coronavirus infections and death by country.

Find out what your home would sell for in today’s market:

Click for FREE Home Value

Articles from my Blog

As we work through the Covid-19 pandemic we ask that you please stay up-to-date on all safety procedures that will help reduce the spread of conronavirus. Please visit the CDC protocol webpage for the latest updates.