Homes just got 30% more expensive; why and what to do about it.

Real talk guys, things have definitely done a switcharoo in the real estate market. Just last April we sent y'all a Musing about the scorching hot market being really on fire. Oh what change can happen in a few
short months!

To do a quick breakdown there a couple factors at play here. The first one being that inflation is nearly at ten percent. This means your dollar is worth ten percent less now than it was last Christmas. The
second bad guy in this scenario is rising interest rates. Interest rates have gone up two points, and each point hike tacks on ten percent more to your monthly payment.

Huge bummer recap; dollar worth ten percent less (thank you inflation you incessant nightmare), and twenty percent higher monthly payments from interest rate increase.

It sucks, thumbs down, zero stars, hard pass, no thank you please.

Okay now the upside, the nearly good news, the flickers of hope, the light in the dark, the bad ass realtor saviors! Yes, we’re talking about real estate agents who are going to reinvent the wheel to help you sell your property. Don’t be offended by my language, but the missionary position just ain't going to
get the job done in this current market. Real estate agents cannot just pop a sign up out front and pass out flyers. Buyers are out there, someone always wants to be where you're trying to leave. But they scared, they're hiding under stuff and behind things and they're not poking out their heads. You need a real estate agent who will bust out a metal detector, and heat sensing black lights, and those crazy machines they use to detect spirits on ghost hunter shows.

The Monday team has two great examples; first off have ya’ll ever heard of an assumable loan? If you had previously refinanced down to a super low interest rate, you might be able to entice a buyer with a 2.5% interest loan they can straight up take over for you when they buy your home! That is pretty attractive these days.

Another really cool and relatively new option is online bidding. It’s an exciting and different way to reach all kinds of buyers, and have a lot of control and transparency as things go through the selling process. This is not auction, online bidding lists many high end properties as well as the beaters. Ask your Monday Team agent for the inside scoop!

What you can do about it recap; find you a rock star real estate agent who gets creative, knows the loop holes, finds the good angle and creates some action! We’re talking a realtor who is basically Mad Max in Barter town.

Lets talk for a minute about prices, to some it may look as though they are dropping. But in reality they have simply stopped rising, they are sitting still, they have flattened so to speak. What you are seeing out there are price reductions. This stems from the painful process of sellers getting real and adjusting their expectations. Often a seller will see the price posted by the folks down the street selling their similar home, and add another ten percent. This is the sellers “wish price”. Its hard to change the plan,
but sellers have seen the writing on the wall, and are reducing their dream price to reflect the reality of
the market.

So it’s a little less attractive now than it was to be a buyer or seller when we were hunting for Easter eggs or drinking the green Irish beer this year. However, if you're willing to get down and dirty, jump
some fences, or as the case may be sit on hold on the phone for 40 minutes, there are absolutely ways to make these transactions happen. The Monday team is an incredible resource of scrappy, innovative, out of the box realtors, and they’re sharpening stuff, putting batteries in things, and lacing up their boots, ready to get it done.