Strange things are afoot, and they're having an impact on the real estate market. But it might not quite be the impact you think. And with all the bad news out there, it's a good time for a reality check.
As you might expect, activity is down. Meaning, fewer homes are selling than usual. Normally, activity from March to April goes up. But this month, it went down. In fact, we're on pace to see as much as a 50% drop in homes sold in April, compared to 2019.
However, look at the average prices. In April 2020, the average Marion County home went for just over $200k, which was actually higher than we saw in January & February. Compare that to 2019, when the average home sold for about $185k.
What we're seeing is fewer buyers, BUT also very low inventory, meaning not a lot of homes to choose from. That is keeping prices from going significantly down. And assuming sellers continue to be squeamish about putting their homes on the market, this should continue.
So overall, remember this is not the same as the last downturn, when we had tons of inventory & buyers had their pick. As long as inventory remains low, we will not see any major downturn in values.
