With the pandemic causing the world to shut down, there were more people finding themselves at home more than ever.  For a lot, this had not gone without most people stepping back and reevaluating their lives and what they want to accomplish.  According to a survey conducted by Coldwell Banker Real Estate LLC that was collected from 2,000 U.S. adults, 29% of adults reported wanting to pursue their dreams since the pandemic hit.  Examples included finding their dream home, expanding their family, or taking on a new hobby.  With eyes to the future, many began doing just that and trends showed that many buyers were looking to make big moves.  Literally.

According to results from a survey conducted by Coldwell Banker, approximately 42% of buyers conducting searches of homes were looking at homes between 500 to 1,500 miles away from where they were currently living.  Reasons for moves included looking for homes that fit their lifestyle better and finding somewhere that was more financially affordable to live.  A similar trend was also found in Coldwell Banker’s 2022 Trend Report for luxury buyers with 92% considering foreign markets for residential investments.  Some of the additional reasons for luxury buyers to look into foreign markets included wanting to invest in building generational wealth, the strength of the U.S. dollar in other markets, the rise in living costs, and the political climate according to a Forbes article written by Jeffrey Steele that was published on October 31, 2022.  Regardless, luxury buyers still viewed investments in real estate to be safer than other sources such as bonds, cryptocurrencies, and pensions in a Coldwell Banker Real Estate survey that was referenced in an article written by Liz Lucking that was published by Mansion Global the same month.

With multiple avenues for buyers to consider, the market continued to be in the seller’s favor.  An interview with Coldwell Banker’s CEO Ryan Gorman conducted by CNBC on April 18th of last year reiterated what many interested home buyers had already been experiencing from years prior.  Demand for homes remained high but inventory continued to be limited with homes staying on the market for an average of eighteen days even with home prices increasing between 16-18% year after year.  Although Mr. Gorman didn’t find these increases inappropriate, he did say that those increases were not sustainable.  Gorman had predicted that the rise in mortgage rates would help tamp down demand, but as of this interview buyers had not seemed to be deterred by this.  As the common observation of multiple offers continued, cash down payments and cash buyers coming out as the winners remained.  With competition so high, a Coldwell Banker survey revealed that 67% of respondents had not found their dream home and continued to be on the search.  To align with this, the Coldwell Banker’s 2022 Trend Report showed that one in four luxury buyers who had bought a home in the previous twenty-four months had buyers’ remorse and were looking to buy again.  

An interview conducted by CNBC just a little over a month later with Ryan Gorman on May 24th of the same year showed similar practices continuing as the midyear point approached.  This was despite mortgage rates coming back to what used to be characterized as normal not even a decade ago at five to six percent.  It was also found that cash buyers were still coming out on top of bidding wars.

   Because of the trend of cash buyers winning on homes with multiple offers, buyers were looking to seek other avenues to set themselves apart.  One of the main ways was to remove other contingencies other than financial.  Coldwell Banker as well as lenders that they work closely with offer products that can help set buyers apart and to appear to be putting forth a cash offer without doing so.  Coldwell Banker also offers other tools for buyers to assist in finding the perfect home.  One of these tools includes the Move Meter.  The Move Meter allows for buyers to calculate factors such as housing affordability, quality of life, cost of living, and job market strength to help them find homes that best fit their lifestyles.  A survey by Coldwell Banker also found that out of the respondents, 46% of homeowners did not know the value of their homes and because of this they were unsure if they would be able to achieve finding or being able to afford their dream home.  Of these respondents, 60% reported that they would trust a licensed agent to help them accurately estimate their home value over an online valuation tool.

If you find yourself wanting to find that dream home, learn about the value of your current home, or simply where to start; reach out to us on The Julie Gritton Team.  With over 50 years of combined real estate experience, our agents are ready to help.  We offer complimentary consults on your home value and have the tools to help you make obtaining your dream home a reality.  For more information on how we on The Julie Gritton Team can help you, please reach out to us by calling our team line direct at 302-645-1111.  If you would like learn more about the topics in this article or to review the sources referenced, please check out the links below.  Until next time, we on The Julie Gritton Team hope you have a wonderful day and are looking to hear from you soon!

https://www.cnbc.com/video/2022/04/18/ceo-of-coldwell-banker-real-estate-weighs-in-on-rising-mortgage-rates-and-the-housing-market.html

https://www.forbes.com/sites/jeffsteele/2022/10/31/luxury-buyers-seeking-smaller-homes-international-properties/?sh=439fefa42c67

https://www.nar.realtor/magazine/real-estate-news/pandemic-led-many-to-new-home-dreams

https://www.realtrends.com/articles/homebuyers-taking-a-leap-of-faith-and-relocating-to-dream-destinations/

https://www.mansionglobal.com/articles/homes-are-a-safer-bet-than-stocks-say-one-in-three-affluent-consumers-01666820066

https://www.cnbc.com/video/2022/05/24/ryan-gorman-demand-of-buyers-continues-to-outstrip-supply-of-sellers.html