What a crazy year 2020 was in the market here! In March, immediately after our governor announced a stay at home order, we prepared for activity to halt. As you'll see in the stats below...that did NOT happen.
What actually happened was that remote working capabilities and acceptance fast forwarded a decade as a result of COVID-19, and as a result we saw a migration from urban areas to smaller, warmer southern markets. All of the sudden, a market of people who always wanted to call Charleston home, could actually make that happen without worrying about career and income concerns.
As you may have seen in past newsletters, available inventory has been the main inhibitor to even further growth. Our team closed the year up 141% vs. 2019, nearly 4x the market average (I throw that in there to say thank you to our past clients for spreading the word of their experience with our team). We can say, with quantitative evidence, that number would have been 200%+ if not for a shortage of inventory. If you are thinking of selling, it is a fantastic time, as our team's average days on market is less than a week, and the majority of our listings are going for over asking price.
We hear concerns and hesitations from buyers, and investors, to pull the trigger on buying given the current sellers market. We'll see the market certainly balance in the future, but that will not halt appreciation in the area based on area metrics. It may slow the appreciation rate, but do not expect home prices to come down. In fact, Charleston housing has appreciated in 4 of the last 5 recessions. I've seen many cases where buyers and investors are waiting for the perfect time to jump in, when if they just came in at market value it would have been beneficial. Buying at market rate a year ago would be equivalent to getting an 11.5% discount in our market today. The logic around waiting in this market does not hold. Added to this argument are the historically low interest rates that can be locked in long term, which makes affordability higher than ever, and long term returns higher.
Whether buying or selling, be decisive and take action! Don't look back at 2021 as a year watching from the stands.
What a crazy year 2020 was in the market here! In March, immediately after our governor announced a stay at home order, we prepared for activity to halt. As you'll see in the stats below...that did NOT happen.
What actually happened was that remote working capabilities and acceptance fast forwarded a decade as a result of COVID-19, and as a result we saw a migration from urban areas to smaller, warmer southern markets. All of the sudden, a market of people who always wanted to call Charleston home, could actually make that happen without worrying about career and income concerns.
As you may have seen in past newsletters, available inventory has been the main inhibitor to even further growth. Our team closed the year up 141% vs. 2019, nearly 4x the market average (I throw that in there to say thank you to our past clients for spreading the word of their experience with our team). We can say, with quantitative evidence, that number would have been 200%+ if not for a shortage of inventory. If you are thinking of selling, it is a fantastic time, as our team's average days on market is less than a week, and the majority of our listings are going for over asking price.
We hear concerns and hesitations from buyers, and investors, to pull the trigger on buying given the current sellers market. We'll see the market certainly balance in the future, but that will not halt appreciation in the area based on area metrics. It may slow the appreciation rate, but do not expect home prices to come down. In fact, Charleston housing has appreciated in 4 of the last 5 recessions. I've seen many cases where buyers and investors are waiting for the perfect time to jump in, when if they just came in at market value it would have been beneficial. Buying at market rate a year ago would be equivalent to getting an 11.5% discount in our market today. The logic around waiting in this market does not hold. Added to this argument are the historically low interest rates that can be locked in long term, which makes affordability higher than ever, and long term returns higher.
Whether buying or selling, be decisive and take action! Don't look back at 2021 as a year watching from the stands.
