A Different Velocity
While it is true that the Orange County housing market has been resilient despite higher mortgage rates, this year’s market speed is much different than the past several years. With a much higher inventory and similar demand, this year’s market time is at its highest since 2019.
Commuters know precisely how long it takes to get to work. They wake up at the same time. They get ready, eat breakfast, and jump in their cars in a timely, habitual rhythm. That is, until the day when their commute is disrupted by bumper-to-bumper traffic due to a brand new construction project with signs exclaiming that it will not be complete for a little over a year. It now takes much longer to arrive at work, so everyone has to recalibrate the commute and prepare by adjusting their morning routine to accommodate the extra time in the car.
The Orange County housing market is experiencing more traffic with extra FOR SALE signs and only slightly better buyer demand. The result is a much slower market that nobody had been anticipating. Housing is much different than the hot markets from 2020 through 2024. It takes longer to sell. Sellers need to recalibrate their expectations and spend more time preparing their homes for sale and methodically and carefully arrive at their asking price, the Fair Market Value of their home.
Excerpt taken from an article by Steven Thomas.
