Today's podcast discusses what Heather and Raylene are seeing with the Bryan-College Station Housing Market as of February 15, 2023. Comparing the statistics of January of 2022 to now: the number of units sold has decreased 18%, new listings have decreased by 11% with the days a home stays for sale on the market remaining about the same. The Realtors discuss rumor vs. reality on what these numbers mean for those considering home buying, selling, and renting in our community.
Today's podcast discusses what Heather and Raylene are seeing with the Bryan-College Station Housing Market as of February 15, 2023. Comparing the statistics of January of 2022 to now: the number of units sold has decreased 18%, new listings have decreased by 11% with the days a home stays for sale on the market remaining about the same. The Realtors discuss rumor vs. reality on what these numbers mean for those considering home buying, selling, and renting in our community.
We've been a part of the Bryan College Station community since the mid nineties. We like to shop, we like to eat.
Heather Golladay:
We love a good drink
Raylene Lewis:
every now and then, and we love this area we call home with over 20 years real estate experience, 1500 property sales, and 630 5 star reviews
Heather Golladay:
because that's how we roll.
Raylene Lewis:
We are here to show. Aggie land unlocked. Okay, so today we're gonna talk about rumors versus reality.
Heather Golladay:
Yeah. You're hearing on the news, and especially in mega markets, about the decline of real estate or the housing market is gonna gonna crash, and we're gonna see these great deals and these unicorn properties popping up everywhere.
Raylene Lewis:
Price reductions, super high inventory. They're telling us all sorts of things. Yes. If you listen to the news,
Heather Golladay:
right. The problem is, is that every market is different.
Raylene Lewis:
Living in Bryan College Station is really, really nice. So we have a lot of people that are still relocating to our area and new businesses that are forming in and around town, and that is what's really making a big difference for for our market as opposed to maybe some of the others.
Heather Golladay:
Well, and we have these big town amenities.
Raylene Lewis:
Not only are we being supported by businesses and stuff moving here, we have students who are moving here to attend classes. And all of that is coming down to our market Is not seeing a decrease in property values or anything like that at all.
Heather Golladay:
No. We're just seeing a leveling, I think most of us have seen the rise in rent rates. I mean, you're, you're talking two, three,$400. Per month that we hadn't seen in quite a while. And parents are coming into town and they're evaluating rentals for their students and realizing, you know, holy cow, what I'd be spending in, in a month throwing away as a rental, I could actually purchase the property and make my money back when I resell it. So we're seeing a lot of parents that are switching to buying an investment for. They're student and then you see the the people that are receiving their renewal notices, having a little bit of a heart attack shot. Yeah. A little bit of a heart attack. When they get that renewal notice and are beginning to realize, well, gosh, you know, for what I pay in rent, there's no reason why I can't try to find a house. So we're seeing that price point of about$300,000 in. Really still extremely active as more and more buyers are entering that market to try to move from rental to ownership.
Raylene Lewis:
We help a lot of investors get their properties leased and the rate increase. Is just because the costs increase. It's not like these landlords are now, oh, I see an opportunity and I'm gonna rake it in hand over fist.
Heather Golladay:
Right.
Raylene Lewis:
That's not true at all. The problem is their cost to maintain their properties has gone up so much.
Heather Golladay:
You don't even have to mention property taxes. I mean, even as homeowners used, gotta gouge this last year. So imagine if you didn't have that homeowner, you know, primary resident protection and you're an investor. There is not that protection of. Ceiling for. Property tax increase.
Raylene Lewis:
Well, yes. And your cost for general house repairs? Yeah. The actual cost for the materials as well as the labor to have the repairs done is going up as well.
Heather Golladay:
So, well, yeah, like that oven that we bought, we were thinking what, four, four to$600 for just a, a plain Jane oven and the lowest that we could find. And not even the lowest. It was just like, I need something that self cleans that. That literally was our requirements and ended up being 1200. Which completely blew the budget for what was expected, you know, as far as yearly maintenance on it, because it tripled in, in the cost.
Raylene Lewis:
Yeah. So the landlords don't have a choice. They have to raise the rent. And so the, the tenants are like, okay, well let me see. You know, can I buy and what's that gonna give me When I'm looking at properties for students right now I definitely, for the, the, the deals that we have, Have seen a multi offer situation, and that's in the price range of 150,000 just for us, that was like kind of the cheapest one that we've sold in that range, up to 350,000. They all had multiple offers and they all still went for over list price. And I think that's just because a supply and demand issue, there are not enough student housing in that price range right now.
Heather Golladay:
Well, I think you're also fighting against people that aren't students. You know, you're fighting against people that have their rent increased and they're like, forget this. I might as well find somewhere that I can purchase. I don't think that's the majority of them, but I do think that that is part of that supply is why continue to spend. 15, 16, 1700 a month when I could actually be investing in a long-term property.
Raylene Lewis:
And I think that's a, I mean, that's a good decision. If we see Brian College Station and we look at the Texas economic outlook, they're saying that the property values in our area are going to continue to increase. And the guess was, I think around 6% for 2023. So you're already gaining, you know, equity. We had a client the other day who had bought a house two years ago and is now having to sell. And in a normal market, you would need to live in your house. You know, three to four years in order to break even, typically on average to be able to sell the house. Once you talk about all the costs that are incurred with getting that home sold, and in this case, because Brian College Station property continues to go up, she's able to sell her house after just living there two years and get what she. To be able to get in her next house for her job. So the idea of, okay, maybe I shouldn't rent, maybe I should buy, seems very reasonable. What I think is going to happen for the summer and fall as we get farther along into the year is I think we're going to have another year where we have not enough inventory and more buyers. There's a difference though, in that. Right now because people are having to pay more money to basically get into their house because the interest rates are so much higher than they were before. There is a standard that the typical buyer is willing to take and there is a standard that they do not want to take because before, when the interest rates were so low, they were willing to take things that were maybe not in pristine condition, right? Things that needed work, things that needed updated.
Heather Golladay:
The buyers are a lot pickier now.
Raylene Lewis:
I think that, that there's going to be less properties available, but I think that the properties that are available that are not. Complete that, that require updating or remodeling that those are gonna stay on the market a lot longer because when you have a certain amount of money that you're now having to pay because you have that higher interest rate, you don't have excess funds cuz they're already paying their maximum of what they can afford.
Heather Golladay:
Right. Which I meant they're gonna be a lot stricter on their, what their home has to have. Like, I've got a list. These are my, this is my list. I'm not gonna say, oh look, it needs new carpeting, so, okay. Well then that's fine. I'll, I'll do that. They want here, this is, I want move-in ready.
Raylene Lewis:
Right. And I think that that actually even applies to the high dollar buyers. So we've been showing properties in the 1.1 to 1.5 range in the last two weeks. And in putting some under contract, we have definit. been competing on that range too, and I think it's a, a different type of home buyer in when you're in that higher dollar range. But what they want is quality.
Heather Golladay:
Mm-hmm.
Raylene Lewis:
And there are a lot less homes right now on the market that offer the quality that the higher end home buyer is going for.
Heather Golladay:
Yep. And well, I'm still shocked that. Prices for those high dollar houses. If it's a 1.5 million home and it has the amenities and it has the features, that's going to be a big deciding factor.
Raylene Lewis:
The, the fact that it's move-in ready? Yes. So right now what we're seeing in the high-end market is that if the property is pristine and move-in ready, you can get even more. Per square foot in some cases than on new construction because people don't want to deal with a hassle. They want to be sold and move in, and there's not a lot of options. So if I can buy this and it already has the pool, and it already has the landscaping and it already has the, the drapes and curtains and, you know, blinds and shades and all that stuff, well then I'm gonna, I'm willing to pay more than for that bright, shiny new penny because I don't wanna deal with the time or the hassle of putting all that in myself.
Heather Golladay:
Yeah, well now, okay. Rumors versus reality. We've had quite a few rentals hit the market that we've helped our properties do. Yes. And there have been quite a few very interesting calls and communications on the properties. So with rentals, we all know the price has gone way up, but I think the best text that I received one of the clients reaching out on your properties was a property that was listed for, let's say,$2,000. The, the individual reached out and said, well, I was really considering, you know, paying more like a thousand dollars for, for that property. And I don't think I've ever received a text like that before. Where not only are they not wanting. Price that was listed, but they want it for like half of that price and, and thought that that was a, that that was gonna be a real thing.
Raylene Lewis:
Yeah. So properties in our market that are a certain price per month, there is typically not a lot of negotiation that goes on per month for rentals with landlords, you maybe can get a little bit of negotiations sometimes if you're willing to agree to a multi-year. But not half. But that's typically, yeah, not half. Mm-hmm.
Heather Golladay:
So the other text that I got, I, you and I talked about it, we had a good little giggle about it. We're not going to ride that pony with you and show you the property so that you can spy on your
Raylene Lewis:
ex-spouse. Yep. That was the call. Well, I wanna see this property. Okay. Are you looking to move? No, I think my ex-husband lives there and I wanna see what it looks what he lives like. No,
Heather Golladay:
no. Not doing, no Not a choice. I can just say as a, just let me just say, Don't, don't, don't make those calls. It's, it's just gonna be a very awkward conversation that has to continue.
Raylene Lewis:
Let's end with, what do you think that the market is going to do as we reach into the second quarter?
Heather Golladay:
Well, I think we talked about, I personally think that that price range about 300,000 and down. I think you're going to continue to see a lot of buyers enter that arena, especially as they get closer to that time where, You know, deadline for move out is, and for the parents that are coming in and wanting a place for their kid,
Raylene Lewis:
and I think it's going to be across the board. So I think it's, it, I don't think it's, even if you're 300, 400, 500 up to, you know, 1.5 million and, and then some. I think that if the, you have good quality, a good quality, I think you're gonna have multiple people that are going to be interested. I think we're going to have more buyers than we are inventory so far. For 2023? Yeah, but nothing like last year. No. I don't think it'll be like last year. But I do think that, right now. If you're thinking about buying, you really need to go ahead and start doing your research. Go ahead and get loan qualified or loan approved, or visit with a lender and see what you can do to start your credit repair. Mm-hmm. so that you have as many options as you can on the table.
Heather Golladay:
The other thing is with the buyers being pickier, is that if you're getting ready to sell, you know those little honey do things that are bugging you as you're walking through the. Probably need to be on your, continue to stay on your honey-do list and get a attention and
Raylene Lewis:
well, and that's what makes a good realtor, is you can have a realtor visit with you when you're thinking about selling before you're actually ready to put it on the market to say, you know, should I do this, should I do that? And the realtor will let you know, okay, for your best bang, for your buck, these are things you need to do. Or no, don't worry. This. This does not have to be done before you can put your house for sale. Maybe let's focus on decluttering. Maybe let's focus on some other things that you hadn't thought of, right? A better way to