The Trendline – Westchester – August 2021
The MLS dropped its August listings data last week and I'm seeing a continuation of the super-tight inventory situation in Westchester 90045. Trendline says → super sellers' market continues.
Westchester home owners have not been wanting to move and that continued into August. At 1.5 months of inventory, we are still in an extreme "sellers' market" scenario. This means that if nothing else came on the market, we would run out of listings to sell in 1.5 months. More listings are trickling out, but it's going to be a long time before buyers catch a break in Westchester, which isn't surprising given its price point compared to the rest of Silicon Beach.
New listings DOWN in Westchester. It's crazy to me that people don't want to cash out and move up, down or away. Westchester is family-centric. This might be a back to school blip.
Listings are still flying off the market as fast they become available. This is proof there are many more buyers in the market than sellers. Median days on market under 10 days. 😮 This number is head spinning.
Prices in Westchester are continuing their upward trajectory, which is no surprise given the demand at this price point. Westchester is mostly mirroring the price trajectory in the broader Silicon Beach market. As long as rates stay low, demand will stay high.
So what up, Westchester?? Home owners remain reluctant to sell -- in a big way. Mortgage rates remain historically low and there are still tons of buyers vying for not so many listings. Westchester remains a big bang for the buck in Silicon Beach.
There is also a good amount of housing stock in Westchester held by older owners who might be more motivated to move now with the passage earlier this year of Prop 19, which allows them to take their low tax basis to another CA property. The provisions kicked in April 1st for the 55+ crowd. I'm not seeing much chatter about this tax savings yet, but it will come.
Westchester CA 90045 Home Sellers
What does this trendline mean for Westchester home sellers? In a nutshell, your home will be snapped up if listed right now.
Think you will make more money if you undertake costly renovations first? Maybe not. I'm still seeing crazy prices paid for fixers. The other reason not to renovate is the time it will take. Right this minute, with so few other sellers on the market, is your chance to get the highest price for your property.
As more sellers list over time, there will be more choices for buyers and prices will soften. That means you might not get your expected return on any renovation investment.
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Westchester CA 90045 Home Buyers
If you’re a Westchester home buyer, it continues to be tricky for you. You need an extra experienced local agent who has a local network for scouting off-market or coming soon listings, so you can get in early and hopefully scoop up a great property without getting into a bidding war.
Pro tip #1 for Westchester home buyers: don’t use the listing agent to submit your offer. That agent will not be super motivated to support your best interests. You will likely be one of multiple buyers they represent on the property. You want an advocate who will fight for you and somebody who knows what questions to ask to help you craft an offer that will stand out and succeed.
Pro tip #2 for Westchester home buyers: you definitely will want to have your lender pre-approval in hand and you’ll need to pack your patience and maybe even consider adjacent areas. Definitely don’t expect much in the way of concessions for repairs.
Pro-tip #3 for Westchester home buyers: With the median price sprinting up by leaps and bounds, you will want to make a list of your non-negotiable needs in a property and be ready to pounce on the first property that matches enough or your criteria. Waiting is getting more expensive by the month.
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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 Westchester 90045, or custom graphs for other areas, just ask!
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