The Trendline – Venice – November 2021
The MLS dropped its October listings data last week and I’m seeing a continuation of interesting trends in Venice. Trendline says → still more of a buyers’ market but shifting decidedly toward sellers.
New listings in Venice have been on a downward trend since July. Fewer listings in Venice will contribute to an equilibrium in negotiating power between buyers and sellers.
Total listings inventory has dropped considerably in recent months, sitting currently at a smidge under 6 months of inventory for sale. This means, it would take 6 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.
Prices continued on their nice upward trend, as you would expect with sellers starting to reclaim some of the negotiating power in Venice. This upward price trajectory is in line with broader Silicon Beach trends.
Properties are moving into escrow in 26 days in Venice. This is about twice as long as the broader Silicon Beach market, but still at a good clip. This means you might get a second look at a Venice property before you make your offer, but you still need to stay proactive as a buyer in Venice.
Sellers are finding their footing again in Venice, although buyers are still enjoying a diminishing advantage.
On balance, Venice is moving at a faster 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 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. You deserve an edge.
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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.
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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!