The Trendline - Venice - June 2021
The MLS dropped its May listings data this week and I'm seeing a continuation of interesting trends in Venice. Trendline says → still a solid buyers' market.
New listings flattened slightly in May. Fewer listings in Venice will contribute to an equilibrium in negotiating power between buyers and sellers.
Although there has been a slight dip in available listings for the 2nd month, Venice continues to hover at 7.5 months of inventory for sale. This means, it would take 7.5 months to absorb the listings for sale today, if nothing else came on the market. The 6-month mark is typically considered neutral territory where buyers and sellers have equal bargaining power. At 7.5 months of inventory, buyers are still in charge in Venice.
Prices are mostly steady with little blips, as you would expect when there are more sellers than buyers in the market. Lots of choices for sale doesn't generally lead to bidding wars.
And properties are still moving fairly quickly at 29 days on market. Properties are under contract in 14 days in the broader Silicon Beach market.
Is Venice falling out of favor? There is definitely a statistical shift in the listings data starting in 2018.
By no means does this mean that you shouldn't buy or sell Venice real estate, but shifts call for different negotiating strategies.
Properties are definitely moving. Despite the increase in new listings, the inventory level is stable. This is because properties are selling at a good clip.
On balance, Venice is moving at a good pace, but not at the same frenzied pace as some of its Silicon Beach neighbors.
Venice CA 90291 Home Sellers
What does this trendline mean for Venice home sellers? It means pricing needs to be watched very carefully. You won't want to hit the market too high or you will be overlooked with so many choices available to buyers. You should also consider a pre-listing inspection to get ready for inevitable repair requests. You'll need top-tier photography, drone footage and a super aggressive social media strategy to set yourself apart from the competition.
Make sure your listing agent is completely comfortable with digital and social media marketing to get your listing and its story in front of as many potential buyers as possible. More buyers falling in love with your property means more buyers vying for ownership at the offer table. 💰💰 And with so many other choices in Venice right now, it's a tall order to bring multiple buyers to the table to fight for your property.
Don't fall into the trap of picking a listing agent who has "been around a long time." I went to a listing appointment last year and was told the sellers liked me and my approach, but wanted to go with the agent who'd been around longer and promised to list higher than I was recommending.
Guess whose charming home on a large corner lot was on the market now for 236 days and subject to two price reductions? Let's just say I never see that agent on social media. Planting a sign in the front yard, putting the listing on the MLS and hoping real hard to find buyers is not working in Venice. If you have a property to sell in Venice right now, you deserve better.
Venice CA 90291 Home Buyers
If you're a Venice home buyer, you're in luck! You have choices, which is not the case in all Silicon Beach communities right now.
Pro tip #1 for Venice home buyers: don’t use the listing agent to submit your offer. The listing agent's first allegiance will be to his or her seller and the odds are against you getting your best deal. You want your own advocate who understands the current state of play in Venice and can push the right buttons to get you your best deal.
Pro tip #2 for Venice home buyers: even in a solid buyers' market, you will still want to have your lender pre-approval in hand to have your offer taken seriously. Properties are moving relatively quickly in Venice so solid, well-written and documented offers will be recognized by listing agents and sellers as coming from a buyer and agent who can get escrow closed without a ton of drama. Reasonable repair requests should be entertained by Venice home sellers.
Want to talk about a Venice home buying or Venice home selling strategy? Grab a convenient time for you on our calendar and let's strategize!
All graphs presented herein show data for the last five years on a rolling 12-month average to smooth the bumps. The data shown is also for single-family homes. If you want condo or combined data for Venice CA 90291, or custom graphs for other areas, just ask!
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