Summer Market
Expect a downshift from the Spring Market to the Summer Market.
The distractions of summer impact the housing market. The busiest time of the year in terms of demand, the Spring Market, comes to an end with the conclusion of the school year and graduations. The Summer Market lasts from the end of May to the start of school at the end of August. Summer is when active buyers are pulled away from the frantic pace of housing. Kids are home and parents are busy carpooling to camps, water parks, pools, beaches, and friends’ houses.
During the Summer Market demand decreases slightly. There are fewer new escrows opened due to buyers placing their home search tours on pause to take a short break and enjoy all the trappings of summer. With demand dropping, the supply of available homes rises as more homeowners place their homes on the market. Many often mistake the Summer Market as the best time of the year to sell a home. In terms of new escrow activity, it is second to the Spring Market. With an increasing supply and falling demand, the Expected Market Time (the amount of time between hammering in the FORSALE sign to opening escrow) increases.
The word on the street within the real estate trenches is that there are already signs of the “summer shift.” A home might not sell in 4 days after being exposed to the market for only a weekend. Instead, it may take two weekends. Homes that are grossly overpriced will have to reduce their asking price. Surprisingly, 6% of the active listing inventory had to reduce their asking price over the past week. Many will scratch their collective heads and wonder what is going on in the market. The answer is simple: SUMMER. It happens every year, and it appears as if this year will be no exception.
Click on the image below the Read the Orange County Housing Report.
