When is the right time to bring your home to market?

This month's reports from S&P and PMI both suggest that sellers could increase their net proceeds by bringing their home to market now instead of waiting for conditions to improve.  Earlier this month when looking at the Portland Market Report, we observed increasing sales velocity and balanced levels of inventory in many neighborhood.  We are advising many of our sellers to get their homes ready for market now instead of waiting until later in the Spring or early summer.

Eleven MSAs in S&P's 20 city composite are reporting new lows.  Portland is one of these eleven markets. The 20 city composite is now withing 2% of the March '09 trough.  If the current trend continues, the housing market will enter into a "double-dip recession."

In this month's PMI report, there is a special report about housing affordability.  PMI compares housing prices and household income, and argues that over time the two should grow at similar rates, or homes would become increasingly affordable or unaffordable.  From a national perspective, homes are now in balance with this historical perspective of affordability.  There are many states, mostly land-locked states in the midwest, where homes are cheap by this measure.  Oregon is one of ten states where homes are still "expensive" by this historical measure.

If you are contemplating the sale of your home or investment property, give us a call and we will schedule an appointment to talk about your pricing strategy and market timing.