In the wake of the spread of the Coronavirus (COVD-19) the National Association of Realtors has released flash studies about buyer and seller behavior. Here is what they found and how Build Idaho and Full Sail Real Estate are working to ensure a safe, healthy, and efficient, home buying and selling process.
The first survey was released on March 9th and the second was released on March 19th. Between these two surveys, there has been a shift in national real estate trends, that are also reflected here in the Boise area.
“While the majority of sellers aren’t yet removing their homes from the market, they are changing their behavior around showings.
When the survey was first launched on March 9, 81% of the agents surveyed said their sellers had no interest in removing their homes from the market. By March 19, that number dropped to 61%, with 16% of sellers actually taking steps to stop marketing their homes.”
Despite this drop, the vast majority of sellers are keeping their homes on the market. In doing so, their home stands out in a shrinking pool of listings, meaning it is more likely to get seen and sold. In addition, agents report that sellers are changing their behaviors when it comes to showings. Most notably, there are pushes for hand washing before and after showings, to the use of hand sanitizer, and removing shoes before entering the house. Another behavior change is not shaking hands. Introductions and hand waving or even a friendly elbow bump are becoming the norm (elbow bumps are a hygienic way to inject some humor into the situation).
How we help you more than anyone else.
One large change is the cancelling of open houses. At Build Idaho and Full Sail Real Estate, we offer fully digital showings of all houses using state-of-the-art Matterport 360 home tours. Using 3D imaging and high-definition photography, you can tour a house on your computer with the clarity of actually being there.
We also offer 360 degree aerial drone pictures for many listings and neighborhoods, so you can see more than just the house. Our community tours take you on a guided tour of some of the top subdivisions without leaving your home. When you are ready to schedule a tour, we offer live video tours where the agent will use FaceTime to stream the video with you live and walk through the home like a regular tour.
Here’s what you should do if you want to see a property via live video tour.
- Identify property/properties that match your pre-qualified buyer’s criteria.
- Coordinate times with the real estate agent so that they are available for FaceTime/video calls, if doing a live tour.
- The agent will set up the showings requested and confirm time(s) with you.
- When the agent calls you, have the property information in front of you for easy reference and to ask questions.
- The agent will start the tour from the outside of the house and walk through like an in-person tour.
When you do buy or sell your house (and it is a matter of when, not if), our agents and transaction department are working with mortgage lenders to expedite the process as much as possible. We are taking the Coronavirus outbreak into account with clauses in the contract to account for slowdowns or delays in the closing process. Talk to your agent for detailed information.
Our normal mode of operation is to be transparent and help you get the best deal possible. In this time of uncertainty, we are working harder to give you all of the information we can and helping our clients buy and sell their homes in a safe, efficient manner, while working with health and safety precautions.
If you have any further questions, call us at 208.391.5308. We are more than happy to give you answers and help you make the right decisions. We are here to help.