You’ve been told to stay at home, but what if you’re in the process of buying or selling one?
Of course, we’ve been asked: “How do I sell my home at this time?”
Homes are still selling. Our Federal Reserve just dropped the interest rate to near zero to keep money moving for people buying homes. It’s quite unprecedented.
If you’re interested in selling your home we can video conference, if you prefer, instead of an in-home selling consultation. We’ll likely have enough information to list your home for sale with a quick tour on your phone, tablet, or laptop. We’ll even guide you on how to shoot photos if you prefer to keep a photographer out of your home. You’d be surprised what we can do with Photoshop and an iPhone these days!
We may be able to sell your home without in-person showings, too. We did a virtual open house last Saturday and a viewer put it under contract without an in-person showing. Additionally, there are individuals and companies who will buy your home outright. We can refer you to those companies and shop the offers. If we do need to show your home, we’ll provide hand sanitizer and anything else the CDC recommends to lower everyone’s risk of infection. Safety is our #1 priority for all parties.
MORE: Set Up A Free Buying/Selling Consultation With A Local Spokane Realtor
Virtual Home Tour Example:
Some of the top Google searches now in real estate are “home prices dropping” and “home prices falling”. That’s not the case at this time; here is a great article on that.
We are here to guide you in making fact-based, researched decisions if you need to sell your home (or buy one) since life must go on for those in situations who need to move.
*This story has been updated. Following this interview, Top Agent Realtors were informed they are no longer allowed to meet with clients in person, or show houses until Wednesday, April 8.*
SPOKANE, Wash. — You’ve been told to stay at home, but what if you’re in the process of buying or selling one?
Local realtors have been forced to get creative in response to the COVID-19 outbreak. They’re now relying more than ever on virtual tours and meetings.
“We’ve never experienced anything like this before,” said broker Mark Anderson.
And he went through the housing crisis in 2007.
“Prices were going down, but at least we could go show a house and people weren’t scared to leave their house,” said Anderson.
Home values are still climbing in Spokane, and March typically marks the start of the busy home-buying season. Anderson, the owner of Top Agent Team, says COVID-19 has caused a minor slowdown.
“We’ve also seen some deals fall out of contract because people have gotten laid off, so they’re not sure they can close right now,” said Anderson.
Governor Inslee banned all gatherings for at least two weeks. Right now, an open house is out of the question.
“It’s kind of a grey area whether we can show houses or not, the Washington ReaLtor’s Association is working on that now,” said Anderson.
Thankfully, buyers can still take virtual tours. If sellers aren’t comfortable bringing a photographer in, they can record it themselves.
“They’re willing to walk around the house and do it live with us so that we can get a better view of the house,” said Anderson.
He says his agents have still done private showings. They give people gloves, hand sanitizer, masks, even booties.
“We’re also asking sellers to leave all the lights on, leave all the doors open so that nobody has to touch anything other than the front door and the realtor will open that up with gloves on,” said Anderson.
“If they’re going through your home, they’re serious, they’re pre-approved, and they’re ready to buy,” he added.
Some homes are selling without any tours right now. Anderson says now is a good time for buyers to avoid a bidding war.
“I think when we can go back out again there’s going to be a pent up demand to buy houses,” he said.
If you have questions about the buyer or selling home process give our team a call at 509-828-2668 and we’d love to answer any questions you have about the currently Spokane Housing Market.
God Bless!
