Forgive me a little cynicism, but NAR has been predicting an improving real estate market since – oh – a while now. And in some cases they’ve been right, but predict change long enough and eventually something will happen.
Besides, I’m not putting a lot of stock in what happens nationally. It affects us, but not in concrete, definitive ways.
Feel free to read the report – you might need something to read before bed. Later this week, after closings through February have been reported, we’ll see how the Blacksburg/Christiansburg/Radford market has fared.
And, to be clear, all of this is opinion at the end of the day. Buyers will buy what they want to buy, and sellers will sell what they want to sell. I wrote in August 2009:
- Real estate values in the New River Valley will hold steady, plus or minus 2% of where they are right now
- Inventory levels will remain high through 2010, with buyers having a lot to choose from
- Appropriate, realistic pricing will remain key for sellers in all price points
- Interest rates will rise, which will slow any value appreciations in the foreseeable future
Yes, real estate levels have remained high (although they seem to be falling a bit), and pricing will continue to be important. But rising interest rates? They’ve fallen since 2009. And values holding steady? I actually got that one pretty close – unscientifically the market in Blacksburg/Christiansburg/Radford was down 3% during the 24-month period after that post was written. <pats self on back>
More to come at the end of the week, after our local February numbers are reported.