February Real Estate Stats: $125k to $225k is Where Home Demand Is

Sometimes I get all geeked up about real estate stats.  It doesn’t happen very often, because I prefer words to numbers, 98% of the time.  But when the figures SCREAM evidence that confirms the most basic economic rule there is – that of supply and demand, I get all atwitter.

Look at these two charts:

Note on the chart above, the closed sales of February, 51% of the homes sold were in the $125,000 – $224,999 price range. A $100,000 spread is holding the majority of the Tri-Cities real estate market.

Now look at the second chart (below) — active Tri-Cities home listings. Only 35% of the homes on the market are in the same price range. That’s the range people are shopping in, and there’s just not that many houses there.

On Friday, a home in my neighborhood priced just below $190,000 hit the market.  I showed it Friday morning.  My clients decided to discuss it over the weekend.  They never got a chance to bid on it because Sunday night the sellers accepted a full price offer on it.

So, if you’re wondering when to put your house on the market and you think it might fall into that price range, then I say do it now.  There are probably a lot of people wanting your house, and willing to pay you close to your asking price for it. And if you’re wondering whether to buy now, and you’re in that price range, I also say do it.  Rates are still hovering around 5%, so you’ll pay less for that house than if you wait for a buyers market to swing back around, because then rates might be at 6%.  At 6%, that $175,000 house will cost you about $110 more a month than if you had bought it when rates were at 5%.