Pending sales rebounded in Boston, Seattle, and in the heart of Silicon Valley, San Jose, Calif., growing between 4 and 15 percent annually in January 2019.
While pending sales have grown, closed sales in each of these three cities posted annual declines, ranging from 1 percent in San Jose, and 21 percent in Boston. Redfin chief economist Daryl Fairweather says that the last six months of 2018 posed challenges for sellers listing properties just as the market began to slow down. “Since then, more sellers have dropped their prices and as a result more homes are going off the market. Buyers who are still taking the wait-and-see approach, knowing the market is shifting in their favor, may want to take another look at the homes they favorited in the fall. We’re seeing this moment before the spring season arrives as an opportunity to get a home that’s been on the market for a few months under contract for much less than its original list price.”
Based on the movement in the early indicator of pending sales and an uptick in touring activity being observed by Redfin agents, it’s likely that we will see closed sales in these cities begin to climb into year over year positive territory very soon.
Seattle Redfin agent David Palmer says, “I don’t think this year will be as crazy as the last five were, but things are already picking back up. Even as buyers return, home sellers should expect to negotiate more than they have in the past few years. The days of buyers waiving all contingencies are behind us.”
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