What are the signs of a healthy real estate market?

One of the best signs of a healthy real estate market is number of months of inventory. The number of months of inventory will convey whether a real estate market is a buyer’s market, seller’s market, or balanced market. A balanced real estate market in Bellingham should have 3 to 6 months of inventory. If there is less than 3 months of inventory, then there is a clear seller’s market. In a seller’s market the number of available homes are scarce and there is a high demand for homes. If there is more than 6 months inventory, then it is a buyer’s market. In a buyer’s market there is a lower demand for homes and prices begin to fall.

How many months of inventory are currently on the market in Bellingham?

There is currently 6.7 months of inventory on the market in Bellingham. This suggests that Bellingham is in a buyer’s market. However, if we look at the past 13 months we can see that Bellingham’s real estate market was very balanced until last August. During last August the national credit/lending crisis occurred and nearly every real estate market took a spike in inventory as it became increasingly difficult to obtain financing.

As we can see by the graph, Bellingham’s real estate market did not spiral out of control and never broke over 10 months of inventory. The market has slowly been working back towards a balanced real estate market of market and I expect the July figures to continue the downward trend from the last couple of months.

I follow the real estate trends in Bellingham very closely and would be happy to discuss the market further with anyone who is interested.

I follow the Bellingham real estate market very closely. As I was looking through the new homes that came on the market this morning, I was overwhelmed by the number of new homes priced way too high. The real estate market has begun to pick up, but by no means are things going gangbusters.

Note to Sellers

You need to be very careful when pricing your property in this market. Assuming that you have chosen to work with a knowledgeable real estate agent, you really need to listen to them. When they suggest a listing price, you should strongly consider their advice. The days of putting a steep price on a property to “see what happens” are long gone. I will tell you what will happen. Your house will not be shown by anybody and you will become very frustrated.

Good Deals Bellingham

There are some good deals on the market right now and some of the homes being listed today are great deals. I still feel firmly that the best deals are being offered by the motived sellers in this market. I suggest that you don’t fall into the trap of foreclosures and short sales. You will only end up wasting time and money. You are far better off working with a seller that has the financial capability to give you a good deal.

Subscribe to Find the HOT Deals

I am no longer publishing my Hot Buys blog. If you would like to subscribe to my list of hot buys in Bellingham. Send an e-mail to Ryan (at) RyanMartinRealEstate.com with HOT BUYS in the subject line and I will get you on the list.

That is it for now. Over and out.