Little Elm Buyer/Seller Guide - No coupon needed for these discounts, just a pre-qualification letter

Everything has changed in real estate over the past 3 months.  So how have the rising interest rates affected Little Elm, Texas?

The GREEN LINE is the number of sales in each price range.  Most sales are happening at the 350k to 600k range.  That makes sense, as the majority of 'move-in ready' homes are in that price range.  But let's go one step further... How long did it take for those sellers to find buyers?

The BLUE LINE is the Cumulative Days On Market, or CDOM.  It's great to see that all these homes were sold, but that doesn't tell how long it took for these sales to happen.  In a healthy market, the CDOM needs to be in the 15-30 day range.  The homes in the 350-600k price range had to wait around 45 days to find buyers.

Let's break down what's happening in each price range.

$300-350k

The 21 or so sales took over 45 days to sell (on average).  This is more about the condition of the properties than the number of buyers willing to purchase in this price range.  The majority of these homes were NOT MOVE-IN READY,  so negotiations have to happen in order to find the right price/true value for each of these homes.  Plenty of buyer demand here from investors and regular folks alike.  It's a Buyer's price range.  Sellers often get greedy and ask for 10-20k MORE than they should when choosing their list price.  After all, most listing agents are showing them sold comparables from over 6 months ago (when overhyped values from low-interest rates were still in effect).  

@ Sellers - When you price unrealistically, buyers know this... And by the time you reduce to a fair price, it's too late.  Buyers very rarely pay your list price when they see the weakness of your 20+ days on market.  

$350-400k

74 sales as the previous price range that sold in around 36 days.  This is where the cheapest move-in ready homes can be found in the marketplace and the hottest price range.  Higher interest rates have trimmed the number of buyers in most price ranges, but this is where the MOST can be found.  This is  as good as it gets for sellers since this price range has the highest number of buyers actively shopping for a home.  If selling for more than 400k, you will have to hire an amazing real estate guide to avoid losing money.  : )  It's an Buyer's price range.

$400-500k

Almost 80 homes sold in around 47 days on market (average).  Do you want to know what happens to homes after 15 days on the market?  They realize that they have to drop their price to attract a buyer.  This is what is happening here.  Buyers have the leverage and sellers are willing to sweeten the deal in many ways beyond a discount.  Did you know that sellers are allowed to pay money towards reducing your interest rate?  This and MORE "deal sweeteners" are on the table for negotiation to get you to buy their home.  I would love to talk with you more about how to make these negotiations work for you.  This price range? It's a BUYER'S Market with big discounts.

$500-600k

About 51 homes sold in around 55 days on market (on average).  Buyers have the leverage on most homes in this price range but it's not all bad news if you are a future seller.  The nicest homes for sale in this market are still being sold within a week or so of them hitting the market.  These amazing homes know they are scarce, and know they will get full value if they are willing to wait for a full-price offer. For the other 95% of homes in this price range, they need upgrades to attract a serious buyer.  This causes these homes to sit on the market for almost 2 MONTHS.  It's a Buyer's Market now and will get even better as we enter the new year. 

@ Buyers - Did you know banks will include upgrades and renovations into your home purchase loan?  Use the market discount to your advantage and use these dollars to get upgrades you usually only find in new homes.  We help you find, design and transform these properties so they fit HOW you do life.  It's worth a conversation! Schedule a quick call with me to get the know-how on the least expensive way to live in a custom home.

$600-700k

Almost 31 homes sold in about 62 days on market.  Most homes are losing their value in this price range.  Over 60 DOM?  This means that there were not enough buyers to purchase the available homes, so they sat there, collecting dust and days on market.  When interest rates were low, values were over-inflated because of multiple offer scenarios.  The thing that hurts the most?  Many serious buyers weren't bidding against real buyers.  The majority of the buyers participating in multiple offer bidding were only barely over list price, but to a serious buyer... All they heard from the listing agent was that "they have over 20 offers".  This caused serious buyers to outbid other offers by 10-50k, just giving away their money for no good reason...And creating over-inflated real estate sold data in the process.  Now that interest rates are high, the serious are the only ones that remain.  It's a SUPER Buyer's market.

Advice for Sellers:

All of this is temporary.  Right now there are more homes for sale than there are buyers.  If you are a seller above 400k, count on selling at a 5% discount or more unless you have a truly exemplary home.  It only takes three buyers to establish real estate values in a neighborhood.  So look around at the homes being sold around you.  These are your greatest indicators as to whether your values will stay steady or lose value (by little or a lot).   The problem is that most sellers are in scramble mode to find a buyer, so they betray others' homes values to quickly cash out.  If you must sell, let's talk about options to convert the home to a rental until interest rates lower.  There is a wise decision to be made here, so let's review all of your options to avoid having regrets.  IF you have to sell, there are some hidden strategies for attracting buyers to your home that most other sellers (or their agents) have no clue about (hint: it's what attracts people to buy a new home).

Advice for Buyers:

Temporarily, you have the leverage.  It may not last quite as long as most reporters of "doom and gloom" are reporting (about a recession in 2023).  While I may not know the immediate economic future, I do know that the Texas economy and our real estate values are surprisingly strong in the middle of the market, where most buyers/sellers meet to do business.  This is the 400k to 700k range.  For the moment, the number of buyers in the market has reduced so much that there are too many homes available.  This means that buyers are getting discounts, interest rate reductions, upgrades and much more than they would otherwise.  As your real estate guide, I would love to answer your toughest questions about how to proceed and give you a customized, step-by-step plan to finally have the home of your dreams.  

In as little as 15 minutes, you can get answers to your real questions...

Book a Call with me today!

Thank you for taking the time to read through this real estate guide for homes in the city of Little Elm, Texas.  Use this info to get a general idea of what's going on over the past 90 days, and reach out to me at timothy@timothyhenley to start talking specifics related to you buying or selling a home.  Great info is more valuable than gold or silver, and will free you up to see the next steps towards living your new life.  Whatever that looks like!

Your Real Estate Guide for Life,

Timothy Henley

Texas Broker

License #572885

PS... Here is a link to my previous report on Little Elm home values.  Published in August, it shows the roller coaster that each of these price ranges have been through.