As I am sure most of you have heard, seen, or experienced by now, Humboldt Counties real estate market has begun its shift. For some, this comes as no surprise given the unprecedented spike in the market that COVID created, it was only a matter of time before things came back down to earth. For others (including most active sellers) these changing tides come as an unwelcomed curveball throwing a wrench in the mix. Please, don't hear what I'm not saying, the market has in no way dipped or recessed, but instead is begging to slow. More specifically, the past few months marked the first time in the last three years where prices stopped increasing. Some listing agents saw this trend coming and have adjusted their listing prices accordingly, while others failed to see the changing landscape and now have listings that have sat on the market for 30+ days. If this pattern continues and listings remain on the market for an extended period of time, our inventory will slowly grow as new listings will continue to hit the market. If that does happen, then we could start to see a decline in pricing which would be a warmly welcomed change of pace for all of our local buyers. If you are in the market to buy, I would not necessarily recommend waiting for the market to dip, as there is no guarantee that happens. That 'advice' obviously comes with a bunch of stipulations, if you're an investor looking for income properties, then it might make sense to wait for prices & rates to potentially come down. If you're a first time buyer, relocating to a new area, or upgrading to dream home, then the decision to buy is a lot more emotional and needs to fit within your life's current circumstances, to which I would say jump on the best opportunity that comes your way, regardless of the current market conditions.
