The pros and cons of the 4th wave
Pros
- In the face of uncertainty, it’s challenging for policymakers to raise interest rates. Omicron may cause a push back on the plans to increase rates early in 2022 and money will remain cheaper for longer.
- With restrictions imposed on travelling and entertainment, people will have more available money sitting in the bank, hopefully increasing their saving capacity.
- With the savings rate increasing substantially, people are more likely to focus on growing their money in investments such as real estate.
- The more time people are forced to spend at home, the more they evaluate their living conditions and values, prompting some major changes.
- If you already own/invest in real estate, the record low inventory shortage will continue to drive prices up.
- Despite home prices seemingly set to continue going up, making homeownership more expensive, many people continue to view buying a home as a great investment option as there is no evidence of house prices decreasing in the near future.
- For sellers in the GTA, the average days on market is under two weeks, and most homes sell in multiple offer scenarios with little to no conditions. This makes most sales processes faster and smoother.
Cons
- Record low inventory limits options for buyers, which continues to drive prices up. Entry level opportunities are more out of reach for first time buyers.
- Due to low inventory, bidding wars continue to frustrate buyers in this market.
- Uncertainty of income during a difficult and everchanging economic climate.
- Likely interest rate hikes in 2022 to combat inflation would increase the cost of borrowing and could put pressure on existing homeowners. However, interest rates are still anticipated to remain historically low as they rise for 2022.
- Uncertainty around Omicron could lead to hesitation in sellers going to market, continuing to limit available inventory and could result in price increases and challenges for buyers.
What we’re doing to work safe
- Practicing physical distancing during showings & home evaluations.
- Offering virtual appointments.
- Always wearing masks and sanitizing hands.
- Limiting the amount of people present during a showing.
- No overlapping appointments.
- Completing paperwork virtually via Docusign when possible.
- No open houses.
- Providing sanitizer and clear signage for potential buyers at showings – sanitize hands on entry, masks mandatory, no using the bathrooms, minimize touching surfaces if possible, leave lights on.
Riding this fourth wave has been frustrating and we’ve all been impacted yet again. We acknowledge the challenges faced by our buyers and sellers and are doing everything we can to ensure the best possible outcomes in this unprecedented real estate market.
If you have questions or concerns about whether it’s a good or safe time to be buying or selling consider reaching out, we’re happy to answer your questions honestly without bombarding you. We pride ourselves on being a source for information without putting pressure on our clients.
We wish you a happy and healthy start to 2022! We are excited to see this year evolve and hopefully get back to business as usual.
From all of us at the Anderson Realty Group,
Kaleigh, Nicole, Harmony & Jacqueline
